Who Dares Wins
by Full Metal Celt
Summary: When a team of human soldiers escapes from captivity in the ayashi world, Aono Tsukune is dragged into their desperate break for freedom. But what he doesn't know is that events are being orchestrated by the players of a far greater struggle for supremacy. With Fairy Tale pursuing him, can Tsukune survive their deadly game? AU, rated M for violence and strong language.
1. Prologue

Hello everybody, my name is Full Metal Celt. This is my first ever fanfic, and I have tried very hard to make it good, so please don't flame me too much if you don't like it!

This story a collaboration between me and my friend Cal. It is based on an idea we came up with a few months ago, but Cal was working on three other writing projects at the time, so the task of turning that idea into a fanfic fell to me. I was struggling a little by myself, but Cal has since agreed to become my co-writer, and this is the fruit of our labour. (Well, mine anyway; Cal can do this sort of thing in his sleep.)

_Who Dares Wins_ is set in an alternate timeline to the Rosario + Vampire manga. It deviates from the current manga arc after Chapter 26 (of Season II). Inner Moka returned to being sealed away after spending a day as a "normal" student, and the seal didn't break, so there was no need for Tsukune and the others to go to Hong Kong. There are two key differences to keep in mind while reading this fanfic: first, Akasha Bloodriver is not missing/dead. We altered the manga's history a little to keep her alive, and she plays an important role later in the story. Second, Fairy Tail's agenda is different - read on to find out what they are up to.

Without further ado, I present my first fanfic: _Who Dares Wins_. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Rosario + Vampire, or any of the names, characters, locations and organisations which feature in the manga. This is a fan-made, non-profit work of fiction based on Akihisa Ikeda's fantastic manga, which I urge all of you to buy and enjoy when it becomes available in your country. Any resemblance the content of this story shares with real events or people is a coincidence.**

******Prologue - A Long Night  
**

* * *

**Youkai Academy**

**Far East Realm of Ayashi**

**October 3rd, 2015  
**  
The library had been locked up for the evening several hours after sunset, but there were few places in Youkai Academy Toujou Rubi could not access. The lock _clack_ed as her skeleton key turned in it, and the door creaked open on old hinges in need of oiling. The vault beyond was dark, illuminated only by the pale moonlight beaming in through the high glass ceiling. Ranks of high shelves packed with books flanked the broad central aisle, in the middle of which was a long row of reading tables. A grandfather clock chimed the eleventh hour somewhere in the gloom.

Rubi helped herself to one of the lanterns behind the front desk by the door, and after lighting it she made her way along the central aisle towards the restricted section at the far end of the hall. It was seperated from the public section of the library by a gate of steel bars, an obstacle easily overcome with the skeleton key. Rubi had only ventured into this part of the library on four occassions - five, now - and it never failed to intrigue her. The shelves were fewer here, and less crowded, but every tome on display was a treasured relic, and contained esoteric knowledge that students were forbidden to access without good reason.

Holding her lantern up high, Rubi scanned the shelves in search of a particular title, but others caught her eye: the sole surviving copy of _The Grimoire of Skaros_, a handsome leather-bound volume of the _Lemegeton, _and a first edition print of _The True Magus. _Scrolls allegedly scribed by Abe no Seimei himself were filed beside the treatises compiled by Shimazu Yasu on the elusive Oni of Aokigahara. Kremmler's _Bestiary of Khaos_ gathered dust next to _The Register __of Tartarus_. A coppery stench tainted the air around the ominous black journals of the infamous Vorleina Dracul, who was said to have penned her work in the blood of her lovers, servants and enemies alike.

At the centre of a luminous pentagram etched onto the floorboards, a descendant of Abdul Alhazred's original _Necronomicon_ lay on a table engraved with protective sigils and runes of aversion.

The _Liber Arcanum_ had evidently not been used for a long time, and Rubi set the lantern down on a vacant shelf to brush some of the dust from its cover. She unclasped the stiff latch and opened the book, and leafed through its contents before snapping it shut and sealing it again. It was written entirely in Latin, and even the diagrams were alien to her, but the book was not meant for Rubi's eyes - the Chairman had sent her to find it, and she had. Tucking the _Liber Arcanum_ under her arm, Rubi picked up her lantern and made her way out of the library, locking both the gate and the door as she went.

Rubi liked the academy at night. It was peaceful when it was empty; the atriums, the corridors, the classrooms, the cafeteria, the workshops... all were all unoccupied, and only the necessary lights were still on. Rubi's footsteps seemed to echo louder than they did when she walked through the school during the day, and she deliberately slowed her pace to enjoy the quietude of the place.

The Chairman's office was located in the oldest wing of the building, and Rubi knocked respectfully before entering. To her surprise, it was almost dark inside - only a handful of the many candles that usually illuminated the office were lit, as if a breeze passing through the room had snuffed out the majority. The Chairman stood with his back to Rubi, gazing out of the rear window with his hands tucked into his long sleeves. As befitting a magician of his calibre, Tenmei Mikogami occassionally underwent sorcerous procedures to prolong his youth and preserve his vitality - making it impossible to guess his age judging from his appearance - but as the Chairman turned to face her, Rubi saw a glimpse of the fatigue one would expect a two hundred year-old man to be burdened by.

_How much fear and regret does a man like Tenmei Mikogami hide from the world? What bitter memories haunt his dreams, and what woes ail his heart?_

"Rubi-san," said the Chairman, the melancholic expression on his face quickly masked by his usual countenance, a confident and sly visage."You have the book?"

Rubi nodded. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting, sir."

"Oh, not at all. I was merely admiring the moon, and reflecting on days long gone," replied the Chairman in an amiable tone. He moved over to his desk and gestured for Rubi to approach, and took the _Liber Arcanum_ from her. "Thank you. A useful thing, this volume. Only forty copies were ever made, and I fear this may be the only one that escaped the great purge of 1862."

"It is a long way from Europe, sir."

"Yes, but unfortunately the Valderians' reach was long. Many a precious book was destroyed at their behest. Books can be replaced, but the knowledge they contain is not so expendable."

Rubi nodded. "Will you be needing anything else, sir?"

"Some tea, if you would be so kind."

"Of course. I'll be back in a moment."

Rubi turned and made for the door, but she had barely grasped the brass handle when the Chairman called out to her. His lambent eyes did not look up from the ancient pages of the grimoire before him, but he lifted his head slightly in her direction.

"Tell me, what do you know of the transformation capabilities of the vampire race?"

A chill ran down the witch's spine as the query dredged up the unpleasent memory of her encounter with Shuzen Kahlua. Rubi had once believed that Moka was the embodiment of the true power possessed by her kind, but the elder Shuzen sister had proven that there was more to the vampires than unsurpassed physical strength and seemingly infinate stamina. Other than what she had learned from observing or conversing with Moka, Rubi knew little about the descendants of Shinso, but she remembered Yukari's explanation of the sinister ability displayed by Shuzen Kahlua.

"It is taboo," said Rubi. "A forgotten technique. Vampires can alter their bodies, and turn limbs into weapons, but they abhor the use of that power because of their vanity and pride in their beauty."

The Chairman nodded. "A concise summary. Shame has driven the vampires to supress knowledge of that power, and there are few vampires alive today who can willingly tap into it. Fewer still are able to master it. _A forgotten technique_ indeed... one that almost led to the devastation of the world, once. Unless we act swiftly, it may yet be the bane of mankind..."

"Chairman?"

"Forgive me, Rubi-san. On nights like this, my mind has a tendancy to wander," said the Chairman, reclining in his high-backed chair. He lifted a gilded hand-mirror from his desk and waved a hand as if trying to erase his reflection, and a moment later the mirror emitted a cacophony of noise. A medley of screams, gunfire and urgent voices mixed with the cries of monsters wounded and furious alike. Strobe-like flashes illuminated a face often masked in shadow, and Tenmei Mikogami's teeth gleamed as he smiled.

"You'd best make a large pot of tea, Rubi-san. It's going to be a long night."

* * *

**USS Columbus**

**180km offshore from Nemuro, Hokkaido, Japan**

**October 4th, 2015**

The mood aboard the USS Columbus was sombre. Everyone, from the lowliest rating to the captain himself, knew that something had gone wrong. Most of the submarine's crew were not privy to the details of the operation, but they knew enough to know that the men and women participating in it were in serious trouble. If they were still alive.

There was no way to confirm that they were. The entire unit had gone dark; the last anyone had heard of them was a garbled distress call recieved by one of the Japanese Self Defence Force's listening posts, where it had been translated from French to Japanese and English, and forwarded to the USS Columbus. From there, it had been transmitted to the CIA headquarters in Langley, then to the United Nations offices in New York, where it was then translated yet again and sent to relevant parties in several other countries.

It was long after midnight, but General Abrams was restless. Alone in his cabin aboard the USS Columbus, he patiently awaited the inevitable call from Washington, and distracted himself by dismantling and re-assembling his service pistol over and over again. It was an idle task he often resorted to when he was stressed; the familiar process of taking the old weapon apart, cleaning it and putting it back together was comforting. Usually. On this night, however, Abrams could not achieve the peace of mind his habit usually brought him.

A translated transcript of the distress call lay on his desk, and no matter how much Abrams concentrated on maintaining his weapon, he could not banish Professor Duval's final words from his memory.

_For the love of God, someone help us! They are all around us! The men, they're... my God, what is __**that**__? No! Please! We need help! Someone -_

Duval was dead. Abrams was certain of that. He did not need to speak French to understand the terrified screaming that replaced Duval's desperate plea for salvation. The message continued for twenty-two seconds after the professor's scream was abruptly silenced, and in that time nothing could be heard but the overlapping thunder-claps of rapid gunfire and eerie, inhuman cries.

As the commanding officer of the United Nations Studies and Observation Group, Abrams knew each and every one of the thirty men and women in his task force. It was his opinion that a commander should be familiar with the men under his command, and so he had taken the time to get to know each of the UNSOG operatives prior to their deployment to the Far East Realm of Ayashi. He would take responsibility for their deaths. Not officially, (though it was likely that his superiors were already thinking of reasons to blame him for the failure of the mission) but personally: each of the men and women had families, and it was Abram's duty to inform them of their losses.

The phone on his desk rang. Abrams set down his half-assembled pistol and cleared his throat before answering.

"General Abrams?"

"Speaking."

"This is Jonathan Cartwright. I'm sure you know why I am calling at this hour."

Jonathan Cartwright. The United States Secretary of Defense, and the chief executive officer of the United States Armed Forces. He was second only to the President himself in the American military chain of command.

"The UNSOG is under attack by hostile forces, sir," said Abrams. "Identity and strength unknown, but I have grounds to believe that my men are being overwhelmed. I request permission to sanction the mobilization of a Japanese military unit to provide reinforcement and extraction."

"Request denied, general. We will gain nothing by sending another unit to the slaughter," replied Cartwright.

"But my men - "

"Are compromised and, as you said yourself, overwhelmed. Their service will be remembered. Think about this rationally, general. Even if the Japs are given the green light to deploy reinforcements, by the time they arrive the monsters will be flossing the UNSOG from between their teeth. We have more urgent matters to focus on. I understand you have a back-up copy of all the data the UNSOG managed to obtain prior to its discovery?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. Then your men did not die for nothing," said Cartwright. "Withdraw from Japanese waters and return to the States for debriefing ASAP. The UN Security Council will want to hear your ideas for counter-measures."

Abrams frowned. "Counter-measures, sir?"

"Of course. Your task force has kicked the hornet's nest. We have to be prepared for imminent retaliation."

"I see. And what if they spare some of my men and hold them hostage?"

"Don't worry about that. Protocol Three is in effect. I have to go; I have three other callers on hold. It's going to be a long night."

"I understand, sir. Goodnight."

Abrams slammed the phone down and swore loudly. _Protocol Three is in effect_. How could Cartwright make such a dire statement so casually? It was one of several contingencies the United Nations Security Council had prepared for an event such as this. As of now, all members of the United Nations Studies and Observation Group were officially disavowed by their respective countries. If any of the operatives were still alive, they were on their own. Nobody was coming to help them.

The general picked up the phone to call the USS Columbus's captain and relay the order to return to America, but hesitated before pressing the auto-dial key. Samuel Abrams had no intention of disobeying orders, but he could not abandon his men, even if there was little hope of them surviving. His brain worked frantically to devise a solution. There had to be something he could do. He pressed one of the auto-dial keys on the phone and waited for an answer.

"Communications station," said a voice.

"This is General Abrams. I need to make a long-distance call," said Abrams.

"Yes sir. For the record, can you state the recipient and purpose of the call?" asked the operator.

"Thames House, London. I need MI5 to put me in contact with one of their informants. Codename _Nosferatu_."

* * *

So what do you think? Are you interested? Yeah, I know that Tsukune and Moka and all the others didn't appear, but remember that this is just the prologue! It is just the foundations for the main story. They all appear in the next chapter. I uploaded it at the same time as this one, so you can go ahead and read it now. I hope you enjoyed the prologue, and that it tempted you to read more.

Stay tuned! :)


	2. Ayashakai

Here it is, the first chapter of _Who Dares Wins_. This is the official beginning of the story. It takes place a few days after the events of Chapter 26 in the second season of the manga. I am not sure what else to say here, so I will just remind you that this is my first fanfic, and that criticism is welcome, as long as it is constructive. I have no interest in reading spiteful, unhelpful flames.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Rosario Vampire, or any of the names, characters, locations and organisations which feature in the manga. This is a fan-made, non-profit work of fiction based on Akihisa Ikeda's fantastic manga, which I urge all of you to buy and enjoy when it becomes available in your country. Any resemblence the content of this story shares with real events or people is a coincidence.**

******Chapter 01 - Ayashakai**

* * *

**Southern District**

**Ayashakai, Far East Realm of Ayashi**

**October 10th, 2015**

_"As president of the Newspaper Club, I make a habit of regularly observing the media of the human world. Over the past few years, human news has been dominated by the events of the on-going conflicts in Africa and South America, neither of which show any signs of concluding in the near future.***** However, during my last visit to the human world, the media seemed to be obsessed with the controversial story about several Colombian soldiers who deliberately killed American combat medics while the men tried to save their wounded comrades. Human law states that such an act is a gross violation of human rights and military protocols, yet these soldiers committed the atrocious crime knowing that doing so would make them war criminals. A grim tale, but that is not what I wish to discuss this week._

_What irked me was the word that one of the human reporters used to label these cruel men: **monsters**. The soldiers did not comply with human morals, so they were deemed to be monsters. I don't know about you, but I take offense in being associated with scum like that. The reporter in question used the word monster to describe undesirable individuals, people who are to be shunned and hated for their miserable ways. I am a monster. Physiologically, not morally. I am proud to be an monster, and to be able to attend Youkai Academy. Despite the negative connotations surrounding the word monster, I feel no shame in my heritage._

_That said, the modern human depiction of monsters is far less negative than it once was. Centuries ago, our ancestors secluded themselves in the ayashi realms to escape the hostile and narrow-minded ancestors of today's humans, many of whom dream of mingling with extraordinary creatures like us. In recent years, monsters have featured as the protagonists of countless works of fiction; a radical and welcome change from the old days when we were depicted as sinister creatures that preyed on children and livestock, isn't it?_

_So take pride in your ayashi heritage; it means that you are special."_

"Gin-senpai really put a lot of effort into his column this issue, didn't he?" Aono Tsukune mused aloud.

At his side, Akashiya Moka nodded. "It was surprisingly insightful of him."

"It's about damn time he started pulling his weight," snapped Kurono Kurumu, who was sitting behind Tsukune. "All that perv ever does is sit about and tell us what to do! And when he does get off his butt, it's only to sneak off to take dirty pictures of girls!"

"Gin-senpai is the enemy of all women, desu," agreed Sendo Yukari enthusiastically.******

Tsukune laughed as the two girls began discussing ways to punish their senpai, and folded up the newspaper in his hands. It was the final draft of the Newspaper Club's next issue, and would be submitted for printing at the end of the day. Since Tsukune had joined the Newspaper Club at the beginning of his first year at Youkai Academy, sales of the _Youkai Times_ had increased significantly, a trend that their nonchalant club president Morioka Ginei admitted was due to the contributions of Tsukune and the girls who had signed up with him.

He handed the newspaper back to Moka and turned his attention to the view his seat by the window afforded him. They were on a class trip to the capital city of the Far East Realm of Ayashi; a secluded metropolis known as Ayashakai. Like many settlements inhabited by ayashi, the city had been built in a pocket dimension******* which isolated it from the human world. Though impossible to pinpoint on a map, Ayashakai was believed to be geographically linked with Kyoto in Japan, but its own culture was a blend of various Asian cultures as ayashi from all over Asia brought their traditions and customs to the capital. It was inevitable that an amalgamation of ethnic groups would influence architecture and fashion, and despite his disinterest in such things Tsukune noticed the obvious differences in building styles and clothing vogues. Road signs displayed directions in Japanese, Chinese, Korean and several other languages Tsukune could not understand.

At a glance, Tsukune could have been convinced that Ayashakai was a city occupied by humans. Cars and bicycles were a common sight, and many of the city's inhabitants wore their human diguises in public, though Tsukune could not tell if this was out of habit, convenience or personal preference. Some of the local plants and birds were alien to him, but after a year of attending Youkai Academy he had grown accustomed to the abnormalities of the ayashi realm, and was no longer unsettled by the strange and sometimes dangerous appearance of its fauna.

_This will be a good day_, thought Tsukune to himself, determined to dispel the unusual feeling of unease that had settled over him recently. He had tried to convince himself it was caused by the regular and (so far) unsuccessful attempts of Wong Fong-Fong to recruit him into the Chinese mafia, but deep down he knew that it had something to do with the recent discovery of a cell of human terrorists in Ayashakai. As someone who originally came from the human world, and who was mostly human himself, Aono Tsukune worried about the repercussions that the ensuing battle between man and monster would have in the future. He worried that it would significantly strain already tense relations between the two races, and it dampened his hope that one day monsters and humans could live together peacefully.

**Human Insurgents to be Executed!**

_**An Informative Report by Akashiya Moka**_

The headline dominated the front page of the newspaper in Moka's hands, and was reflected in the window. At school, many of the newspaper's regular readers had asked Tsukune if the club had access to press information about the terrorists, and were eager to know what was happening after custody of the humans was suddenly transferred from the Ayashakai police to the Shuzen clan without a formal explanation.

As a scion of that infamous vampire coven, Moka had indeed been able to learn more about the situation. She said that the Shuzen clan had deemed the humans too dangerous to be imprisoned and, in their typically unmerciful fashion, sentenced the humans to death. It struck Tsukune as unfair that the Shuzens were permitted to act as judge, jury and executioner, but Yukari had explained that nobody in the ayashi realms with the power to oppose the Shuzens cared enough about the lives of a handful of humans to intervene on their behalf.

"Is something the matter, Tsukune?"

Tsukune snapped out of his reverie and found himself looking into Moka's eyes. They were so bright and clear, like polished emeralds glittering in the sun. He swallowed, realising that she had moved her face closer to his.

"Moka-san..."

"Tsukune..."

"Moka-san..."

"Tsukun-hmmgh!"

Before their intimate exchange could reach its conclusion, Kurumu leaned over the back of Moka's seat and covered the pink-haired vampire's mouth with her hand.

"You've already drank Tsukune's blood this morning!" cried Kurumu. "My Destined One is not your mid-morning snack!"

"Kurumu-chan, she wasn't going to-"

"I was just going to have a little sip!" protested Moka, struggling to free herself from Kurumu's grasp.

_Then again, maybe she was_... thought Tsukune with a disappointed sigh.

* * *

The Assembly Hall was an impressive structure at the heart of Ayashakai. It was the primary headquarters of the regional government, and as such its design was meant to emphasize the importance of its purpose. Its exterior gave it the appearance of a grand, five-storey temple. Imposing statues of serpentine dragons flanked the wide steps leading up to the front entrance, their front claws raised as if in salute. One did not need to be a sculptor to tell that the statues pre-dated the building itself by several centuries.

"Stay together, everyone!" called Nekonome, their teacher and supervisor of the Newspaper Club. "This is a very busy place, and if you wander off and get lost, you might get left behind!"

The students chorussed their acknowledgement, and followed their teacher up the steps. Disembarking from his bus, the Bus Driver leaned against the side of his vehicle and lit a fresh cigar as he watched Aono Tsukune endure the overly-enthusiastic affections of his female companions. The Bus Driver chuckled to himself and tucked his lighter away, then glanced down at his watch.

"Not long now," he muttered with a smile.

* * *

"...And this is the Assembly Chamber."

Someone whistled in amazement, and the other students giggled. Tsukune was impressed; the chamber was a tiered hall full of chairs and desks arranged in a half-circle around a dais, at the centre of which was a throne fashioned from a material that looked suspiciously like polished bone. The tour guide and the students were the only people in the room, and their voices sounded tiny in the cavernous chamber.

"All laws and policies in the Far East Realm of Ayashi are made here," said the tour guide. "A representative of each race is required to attend each session, and several members of the assembly have the honor of representing _the masses_ youkai of uncertain origin, or those who no longer live among their own kind. As you can imagine, that's a lot of youkai! Two sessions are held every week, but the High One can call an emergency session whenever he or she deems it necessary..."

_If the monsters were to declare war on the humans, would they do it in this room?_ wondered Tsukune. It was a chilling thought to imagine ranks of monsters seated in this chamber, baying for human blood, but an idea his imagination could easily envision. He shook his head, and mentally assured himself that such a thing would never happen. Whatever damage the human insurgents had caused was not significant enough to warrant a declaration of war.

"Tsukune? What's wrong?"

Kurumu was staring at him, an expression of concern on her face.

"Nothing," he replied. "Why do you ask?"

"You're making a weird face," said Kurumu.

Tsukune smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "Really, it's nothing."

Kurumu returned the smile, and hugged Tsukune's right arm tightly. His pulse quickened a little as it was engulfed by the soft mounds of her G-cup breasts, and he blushed when she smiled up at him coyly.

"School rules forbid such intimate contact between students..."

The human and the succubus jumped as Shirayuki Mizore appeared from behind a nearby pillar, glaring daggers at Kurumu.

"Mizore-chan? How long have you been there?"

"Since we arrived," replied Mizore softly.

"But you weren't on the bus!"

"I was. I lay in Spying Point 209 for the whole journey..."

"You stalker! You even have a hiding place on the school bus?"

Fortunately, the tour group began moving again before Mizore and Kurumu's argument could escalate any further, but each grabbed one of Tsukune's arms possessively and held on to him as they walked. Unable to free himself from their unyielding grip, all Tsukune could do was laugh nervously. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Moka looking over at him, but when he looked around she was talking to Nekonome. Had she really been looking at him, or was that just wishful thinking on his part?

In the corridor beyond the Assembly Chamber, the group paused outside the restrooms. Only Yukari went in, and the tour guide exchanged a few words with Nekonome, who turned to Tsukune with a broad smile on her face.

"Aono-kun, please wait here for Sendo-chan," she said brightly. "We'll go on ahead to the press centre. You two can meet us there after Sendo-chan is finished."

"Eh? Why me?" asked Tsukune.

"It's your duty as Class Manager to make sure that everyone in the class is safe!" said Nekonome. "Everyone else, let's follow Akihisa-san. I'm sure there's lots left to see!"

Reluctantly, Kurumu and Mizore released Tsukune and went with the rest of the class, leaving Tsukune alone in the corridor outside the toilets. Minutes ticked by, and Yukari still did not appear. He was beginning to consider knocking on the ladies' room door and calling out to her when the door swung open.

"Everyone else has gone on ahead," Tsukune began, but faltered when he saw the expression on the young witch's face. "Yukari-chan, what's the matter?"

"Didn't you feel that, Tsukune-san?" asked Yukari. Her face was pale, and her eyes were wide.

"Feel what?"

"That... feeling. The huge displacement of magical energy."

Tsukune scratched his head. "No, I didn't feel anything. My ability to sense ayashi energy hasn't reached the point where I can feel things like that."

Yukari started off down the corridor at a brisk trot, pausing when she came to the T-junction at the end. Rather than turning right, as the tour group had, she turned left and hurried along in the opposite direction.

"Wait, Yukari-chan!" called Tsukune, jogging after her. "We have to meet up with the others! Yukari-chan!"

Tsukune's legs were far longer than Yukari's, and it did not take long for him to catch up to her. He took her by the hand and gently tried to turn her around, but she could not be persuaded to turn back. Whatever was distracting her, Tsukune couldn't sense it at all. Suddenly, Yukari tensed up and stared down the corridor with wide eyes. Tsukune followed her terrified gaze and spotted the cause of her fear; a huge man had appeared at the next junction, staring back at them with a cold, calculating gaze. In one hand he held what looked like a police-issue baton, and in the other he clutched the handle of a kitchen cleaver. Even without the odd combination of weapons, the man's aura was as threatening as a lion's.

He began to advance towards them, calling out in a language Tsukune could not understand. This time, Yukari did not resist when Tsukune steered her back the way they came.

"Run!" he hissed, and the pair fled from the giant, who shouted something and charged after them, bearing down on them like a predator moving in for the kill.

* * *

Cal's Annotations

***** - The conflicts Gin refers to are two parts of a fictional war raging in the human world, beginning in early 2013 after a neo-fascist political organisation called the New Dawn came to power in Eastern Europe and attempted to establish a new world order by intimidating other nations into complying with its regime. Countless other fascist groups were swayed to their cause, and the New Dawn threatened to annihilate Paris with nuclear devices if its demands were not met. The United Nations acted swiftly and deprived the New Dawn of its nuclear arsenal, but were unable to prevent the group's ringleaders from scattering and fleeing to South America and Africa. By 2015, the UN and its member nations were locked in a protracted conflict with the fanatical insurgents of the New Dawn and the various mercenary companies in its employ.

This war has little to do with the events of this story, but I felt it was necessary to have it running in the background to distract the UN and prevent it from launching a full-scale invasion of the ayashi realm after learning of its existance, and prevent certain UN member nations from storming the place individually looking for resources to capitalize on. This is **not** canon material.

****** - Yukari usually says "desu" at the end of her sentences, but since Celt and I both find it annoying she won't be saying it much in this fic, if at all. If this displeases you, just assume that everything she says is punctuated with "desu".

******* - A pocket dimension - or a "small secluded world" - is a small dimension connected to a much larger world, like the campus of Youkai Academy being connected to the human world via the tunnel by the sea. Most of the pocket dimensions in the manga are said to be artificial and created for specific purposes, such as isolating ayashi communities from the human world, protecting endangered species in monsterous wildlife reserves, or hosting arenas in which characters can train or fight each other. The Dark Lords seem to have a knack for building pocket dimensions like these. It is also known that some ayashi can utilise "Space Transfer Techniques" to move through different dimensions at will.

* * *

**Celt:** "And that's the end of _that _chapter." as Homer Simpson would say. I forget which episode he says it in.

Please don't be disappointed by the lack of action so far things begin to heat up next chapter, and then the shit really hits the fan in the chapter after that. I have a lot of free time on my hands at the moment, (time that I should be using to study, but I will probably waste it playing video games and reading manga instead) so I should update this pretty quick, and if I can't then hopefully Cal can pick up the slack in his free time.

If anyone is wondering, "Ayashakai" is a combination of the Japanese words "ayashi" and "shakai", which apparently mean "monster" and "society" respectively. It is not an actual place in the manga, but Cal and I share the belief that there is a community in the Rosario Vampire universe where lots of different monsters live together like ordinary people. That concept eventually led us to come up with Ayashakai, and specific parts of it will be explored later in the story.

Stay tuned!)


	3. Collision Course

And here we are with the second installment of _Who Dares Wins_. This one is a bit longer, and focuses primarily on the OCs, but for those of you who get miffed when a fanfic shifts its focus away from the main characters: please just grin and bear it. This is an important part of the story, as it introduces some characters who Tsukune will be interacting a lot with over the next few chapters.

If it helps you endure this OC-centric chapter, know that this will be the last chapter to focus entirely on the OCs. After this, the POV will shift to canon characters - mainly Tsukune, Mizore, Shuzen Kahlua and Wong Fong-Fong - with the occassional segment told from the perspective of an OC. (Spoiler: usually before they die.)

Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Rosario + Vampire, or any of the names, characters, locations and organisations which feature in the manga. This is a fan-made, non-profit work of fiction based on Akihisa Ikeda's fantastic manga, which I urge all of you to buy and enjoy when it becomes available in your country. Any resemblance the content of this story shares with real events or people is a coincidence.**

**Chapter 02 - Collision Course**

* * *

**Shuzen Estate**

**Far East Realm of Ayashi**

**October 10th, 2015**

The dungeons of Shuzen Castle were a miserable place, a warren of torch-lit passages and barred cells hewn from the rock of the plateau on which the castle itself was built. There were no windows or clocks to count the passing of time; those unfortunate enough to find themselves imprisoned in the dungeons were forced to endure a perpetual twilight in which time seemed to hold no meaning.

The only sense of change was the guard shift rotations. Amy had not been able to work out how often they changed, or what point in the day each shift covered, but she by now she was familiar enough with the faces of the guards to recognise them as they entered the cell block to check on their charges. Some did so out of obligation and duty. Others did so to bully and torment the surviving members of the United Nations Studies and Observation Group.

The UNSOG***** had once numbered thirty people; a contigent of ten observers - sociologists, biologists, cryptozoologists and Japanese translators - and twenty experienced soldiers hand-picked from various military units belonging to the member states of the United Nations. Of those thirty, sixteen had been killed during the raid on their safehouse in Ayashakai. Of the remaining fourteen, five more had perished in captivity. Amy Reese was the last of the observers. A translator. She was not a combatant, and she lacked the courage and fortitude of the men in the cells around her.

The servants of the Shuzen clan had not been gentle in their interrogations, but unfortunately for them the surviving UNSOG operatives were uncompromising veterans, and nothing could be learned from them except their names and serial numbers. Upon realising this, the interrogators had turned their attention to Sven Eriksson, a biologist from Denmark. In an attempt to kill two proverbial birds with one stone, their captors forced Amy to witness Sven's interrogation, in the hopes that it would soften her up for her own questioning. Truth be told, it did exactly that, but so far none of the masked ayashi had come to drag her away to the "chat room".

Sven had talked. He told the monsters everything he knew. In his desperation to appease his tormentors, he revealed the purpose of the UNSOG: to study the culture of the ayashi, and evaluate what kind of threat they posed to mankind. The interrogators had calmly noted down Sven's confession before forcing a handful of carnivorous worms down his throat.

Amy feared that she would meet a similar fate, but her captors had taken great delight in informing her otherwise. Their master, the infamous Shuzen Gyokuro, intended to make a show of the UNSOG's extermination, and was arranging for the humans to be pitted against a myriad of ferocious creatures in a public spectacle inspired by the gladiators of ancient Rome.

"It's gonna be a riot," one of the jailers declared as he prowled down the aisle between the cells. His body was relatively human, but his upper body was unusually thick, and his head resembled that of a horse. He had introduced himself as Umatoko, and in Amy's opinion he was the cruelest of all the guards. He spoke in Japanese, unaware that only Amy and two other members of the team could fully understand his words. "It's gonna be so much fun watching you lot get torn to pieces while you shit yourselves. Anyone know what a manticore is? Eh? Ah... it's gonna be fun."

_For whom?_ wondered Amy.

"Doesn't sound too bad," said a voice in the cell beside her, in perfect Japanese. "Back home, my old dad used to wrestle with the crocs. Big fellas, they were. Real mean when the sun was up."

"Did I give you permission to talk, human?" snarled Umatoko.

He paused in front of Amy's cell, and the young woman backed away from him cautiously. Umatoko's four-fingered hand habitually clutched the handle of the baton he wore at his hip like a sword, and the fact that he had drawn it out was a clear sign he was angry.

"Easy, mate. By the way, what are the odds of you coming in first place in the races this afternoon? Four to one?"

Amy's blood froze. What the hell was Jackson doing? They all knew that Umatoko was bad-tempered, and that he had beaten one of the other UNSOG operatives to death for commenting on his appearance, so why was the Australian soldier goading him?

Growling angrily, Umatoko removed the ring of keys from his belt and unlocked Jackson's cell, and clipped the keys back into his belt before opening the cage and hauling its occupant out into the aisle. He pushed Jackson up against the bars of Amy's cell with one hand, and raised his baton threateningly in the other.

"You dare mock Umatoko Aji?" growled Umatoko.

"Who dares wins," replied Jackson.

Before Umatoko could respond, Jackson threw himself forward and slammed Umatoko against the bars of the cell opposite Amy's, and for a few moments man and monster wrestled with one another before the latter overpowered the former. Umatoko shoved Jackson back against Amy's cell, and jabbed the end of his baton into the human's abdomen. Jackson double over and sank to his knees, and curled into the foetal position as Umatoko began beating him with his baton.

"I am Umatoko Aji! You will respect my authority! I will- "

A hand reached over Umatoko's shoulder and grabbed him firmly by the jaw, and forced his head back while another hand slashed his exposed throat open in a swift but precise movement. Amy supressed a shriek and pressed herself against the back wall of her cell to avoid the spray of blood, and watched as Umatoko Aji collapsed onto the floor and spent his final moments writhing and choking in defiance of his fate.

"Arsehole," muttered Captain Alexander. He spat contemptuously on the horse-man's body and flicked blood from his shiv. "You alright, specialist?"

"I think I'm gonna chunder," groaned Jackson. He spewed what little food his stomach contained onto the floor.

"You did well pinning him long enough for me to get the keys off him. You Aussies really are a dependable lot, aren't you?"

The first person Alexander freed was Bianca Vokes, a woman who had formerly served as a combat medic in the Canadian Armed Forces. She examined the bruises on Jackson's torso while Alexander quickly unlocked the other cells to release their grateful occupants. Within a minute or so, Shinji Nanahara, Michael Hayden, Gregori Baranov, Daniel Moore and Simon Cross were free for the first time in days.

Baranov relieved Umatoko of his weapon, and as he did so he looked up at Amy. His eyes narrowed.

"What about this one?" he asked Alexander gruffly. "Is she coming?"

"Aye. Nobody gets left behind," replied Alexander.

Joining the others in the aisle, Amy was reminded of her physical inferiority to the soldiers. She was the youngest member of the group, and by far the shortest. Baranov, Hayden and Cross were giants, each standing over six feet tall and corded with muscle. Jackson, Alexander and Moore were not quite so tall, but Amy knew that their lean, powerful frames possessed strength and stamina equal to the bigger men. Nanahara and Vokes were shorter than the rest, but both were still three or four inches taller than Amy.

"All present and correct, captain," reported Nanahara, saluting Alexander.

"Good. Commence Operation _Get the Fuck Out Of Here,_" replied the captain.

"Fuckin' A," agreed Hayden. "You got a plan, boss?"

"I always do, sergeant. Follow my lead."

The group quietly made their way out of the cell block, and crept along the empty, silent corridor beyond until they reached the guard post. Cross, who was on point, cautiously peered inside, and made several hand gestures to wordlessly report what he saw within. Alexander nodded and passed him the improvised knife he had used to kill Umatoko. Amy only caught a glance of the weapon before Cross slid into the guard post and murdered its occupants, but what she saw surprised her.

"Was that a spoon?" she asked, after Cross had announced that the coast was clear.

Alexander nodded. "It took me a few days to scrape the edges into a point. It's a little trick I picked up in Colombia, back in the early days of the war. The monsters underestimated us; they never considered the possibility that we would turn something as mundane as a metal spoon into a weapon. Santiago made the same mistake."

Amy didn't know who Santiago was, but the smile on Alexander's face as he thought back to the event told her that the man had not lived to learn from his mistake. Cross came out of the guard post, carrying a katana in each hand.

"That horse-faced bloke must have been at the bottom of the food chain," he said. "He had to carry a stick while these boys got proper swords. I'm not trying to be racist or anything, but do you know how to use one of these, lieutenant?"

"I do," replied Nanahara, taking the weapon Cross held out to him.

"No guns?" asked Hayden.

"None. I'm not counting on them having our gear upstairs, either."

"Then we'll have to get what we need from our reserve cache in Ayashakai," said Alexander.

Amy raised a hand. "How do we do that, sir? The Shuzen Estate exists in a seperate pocket dimension from the capital. I don't think we will be able to get there on foot."

"We'll just use one of the port-gates," said Hayden. He frowned when everyone looked at him. "Shit, I'm just a Jarhead, but I know something y'all don't?"

"Spit it out, yank," snapped Cross.

"Kiss my ass, limey," retorted Hayden. He nodded apologetically to Alexander. "No offence to you, boss. Anyway, it's like the girl says; the worlds these monsters live in are like snow-globes. They're all connected to each other and our world by portals, which Doc Duval called port-gates. All we gotta do is find one that'll take us back to the city, then we can grab our shit and kick some ass."******

Alexander looked at Amy and asked, "Will the Shuzens have access to one of these things?"

"I'm not sure. Professor Duval was the one who did all the research on the port-gates. All I know for certain is that the Shuzens are really powerful in the Far East. They come and go as they please."

"Then they'll probably have access to a portal back to Ayashakai," concluded Alexander. He grinned. "Let's go and ask our hosts for directions, shall we?"

* * *

It took the group five minutes to ascend from the dungeons and enter the lower levels of Shuzen Castle. As luck would have it, few of the utility rooms and kitchens they passed were occupied, and the few staff members they saw were clearly not vampires. From what Amy had learned during the five months the UNSOG had been active in Ayashakai, the vampires were a proud race, and it did not surprise her that none were to be found in places where menial labour was conducted.

Baranov and Moore ambushed a servant and discreetly man-handled him into the supply cupboard where the rest of the group hid themselves in, and they held the reptilian man still while Nanahara questioned him. Fear and shock weakened the servant's resolve, and he divulged all of the information Nanahara requested. The Shuzens, as Amy had suggested, were a very influencial faction in the monster world. Even the Old Covens in Europe regarded them with great respect. Such was their power and influence that they were permitted to maintain a network of private portals, enabling them to move freely within the region.

To Amy's dismay, the servant's interrogation ended just as Sven Eriksson's had, though his death was far quicker and humane than Sven's. Nanahara seperated his head from his shoulders with one, well-practised swing of his katana, and Baranov stuffed the body into a convenient barrel that reeked of apples. Vokes found a box full of unused kitchen utensils, and the group armed themselves with an assortment of knives and cleavers. Any weapon was better than no weapon, and even Amy felt a little more confident after Cross handed her a carving knife.

After equipping themselves with a few more improvised weapons, the group continued on, but came close to revealing their presence when the cooks began preparing breakfast for the residents of the castle.

"Goddamn, you smell that?" whispered Hayden.

Cross nodded. "Bacon. Bloody hell, I'd fight all the Shuzens bare-handed for a good fry-up."

"That can easily be arranged," whispered Jackson. "But for the sake of those who have no intention of dying here, please restrain yourself."

They made their way upstairs, their nerves winding tighter the closer they came to the main body of the castle. Their chances of encountering vampires increased with each step they took, and by the time they reached the ground floor, even Nanahara - the most level-headed member of the group - was jumping at shadows.

As the reptile-man had claimed, the Shuzen's private port-gate hub was located on the ground floor. The humans found it without much difficulty, and they were fortunate enough to enter it without being detected. The hub was a circular room, brightly lit despite the absence of an obvious source of light. A dozen doors were set into the walls, each with a sign fixed above it. The signs were written in Japanese, but Amy could read them; it seemed that the Shuzens had access to every major monster settlement in Asia, but to her disappointment there were no portals to the human world.

"Ayashakai," declared Jackson, moving towards the door beneath a sign displaying the name of the capital. Despite his primary role as a soldier, he had a firm grasp on the Japanese language. He opened the door, and the group found themselves staring into a dark, featureless tunnel.

"Who's going first?" wondered Moore.

"Ain't me," said Hayden immediately. "I've seen movies. Black dude dies first. That shit ain't right, man."

Nanahara spared them the effort of arguing the matter further by walking into the tunnel. Using his katana's sheath like a blind man holding a cane, he took careful strides forward and advanced deeper into the darkness. Content that they wouldn't be the first to find out if the Shuzens had set traps in their personal portals, the rest of the group followed.

* * *

The light hurt Amy's eyes when Nanahara opened the door at the far end of the tunnel. She squinted as she stepped out of the tunnel, and waited a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the light after shuffling in complete darkness for what seemed like an hour. They were in a chamber similar to the port-gate hub in Shuzen Castle, but there were a number of obvious differences. There were almost twice as many doors in this room, and the words on the signs above them were different. Instead of places, they displayed names, though Amy could not guess why.

"Where are we?" asked Cross.

"Somewhere in Ayashakai, with any luck," said Alexander. He turned and closed the port-gate leading back to Shuzen Castle, and Amy flinched as he kicked the handle repeatedly until it snapped and clattered to the floor. There was a peculiar _wooshing_ sound, like air rushing to fill a vacuum, or a powerful draft blowing through a tiny gap. Satisfied, the captain pried the door open again. The tunnel was gone, replaced by a blank wall that seemed as solid as the other walls in the room.

"I suspected that would happen," said Alexander. He almost seemed pleased with himself.

Hayden clapped in approval and said, "Nice one, boss. That'll keep those blood-sucking assholes off our six."

"What if we have to go back that way?" asked Amy.

"What could be here that will make us _want _to go back that way?" countered Alexander. "Baranov, go and scout the area. We need to find out exactly where we are, and plan our next move."

Baranov nodded and stalked out of the chamber, his weapons held at the ready. Amy knew little about him, and despite his blunt, unfriendly demeanor, he had proven to be a very capable soldier. Even before the UNSOG's discovery and capture, he had kept to himself, conversing only with Alexander, Nanahara and the late Lieutenant Magnusson, who had died during the raid.

"What do we do if there are guards here?" asked Amy.

All of the soldiers looked at her as if she was an idiot. She mentally cursed herself for asking such a stupid question. What would soldiers do when faced with hostile opposition?

Before anyone could utter a word to answer her, Baranov began shouting nearby in Russian.

* * *

Cal's Annotations

***** - The UN actually has a unit designated UNSOG (United Nations Special Operations Group), but the UNSOG in this story is a completely different unit. The United Nations Studies and Observation Group is a **fictional** military unit which does not exist in real life, nor in the Rosario + Vampire manga itself.

**** **- I was planning to explain this later, but I think it would be more appropriate to explain it here and now. Port-gates (Celt's term - I prefer to just call them portals) operate using a Space Transfer Technique similar to that used by Kamiya Kanade in Chapter 21 (Season II) of the manga, linking two places through a seperate dimension. Door-pattern portals require a key to function properly: without inserting a key into the portal's lock prior to opening it, the user will have to cross the default trans-dimensional corridor linking it to its counterpart. The action of inserting the key and turning it minimizes this corridor by warping space and physically connects the two doorways. Destroying the lock mechanism of either portal causes the corridor to collapse and renders both doors redundant, as proven by Alexander. The displacement of energy sensed by Yukari in the previous chapter was the fallout of a dimensional corridor's abrupt destruction.

* * *

Dun-dun-duuunnn! So it was Baranov who found Tsukune and Yukari. He's Russian, by the way. Amy and Vokes are Canadian, Hayden is American, Cross and Alexander are British, Nanahara is Japanese, and Jackson and Moore are Australian. Their nationalities aren't important, but it justifies some of the tension between certain characters.

Things have been going smoothly so far for the humans, but now that they're encountered Tsukune, how long will their luck last?

In the words of the late Simon "Ghost" Riley from Modern Warfare 2: "It's gonna get bloody."

Stay tuned! :)


	4. Manipulation

Studying is such a pain! It has taken up too much of my time in the past two weeks, so my co-writer cooked up and wrote this chapter almost entirely by himself in his free time. I only wrote a few bits of it. The rest is Cal's handiwork.

Thank you everyone who took the time to add our story to their favourites list and review the last few chapters, and special thanks to **Anzer'ke** for getting in touch with Cal via MangaFox and offering advice to smooth out the beginning of Chapter 1. Go check out his stuff! :)

Read on and enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Rosario + Vampire, or any of the names, characters, locations or organisations which feature in the manga. This is a fan-made, non-profit work of fiction based on Akihisa Ikeda's fantastic manga, which I urge all of you to buy and enjoy when it becomes available in your country. Any resemblance the content of this story shares with real events or people is a coincidence.**

**Chapter 03 - Manipulation**

* * *

**The Assembly Hall**

**Ayashakai, Far East Realm of Ayashi**

**October 10th, 2015**

Hand in hand, Tsukune and Yukari ran back down the hallway with the intimidating menace in pursuit. Tsukune did not need to look around to tell how close the giant was; the floor shuddered under his heavy tread, and the pause between each thump was a clear indication that his stride was long. Forced to run at a pace Yukari could match, Tsukune was not surprised that their antagonist was closing in on them so quickly. Like a wolf chasing down a fawn, the man would soon be in range to attack.

Seizing the initiative, Tsukune let go of Yukari's hand and halted, wheeling around to face the predator. The man was three strides away, and showed no sign of slowing as he prepared to swing his right arm and strike Tsukune with his baton. The distance between them closed in a heartbeat. As the giant thrust his right arm forward, Tsukune swayed aside to avoid the blow and grabbed the man's wrist with his own right hand. As the momentum of the giant's charge carried him forward, Tsukune grabbed his opponent's belt with his left hand and applied his own strength to the equation, spinning on his heel and hurling the man down the corridor. The giant grunted in shock and crashed down hard on his front, tumbling on his side for several metres before regaining control and halting his violent roll.

A year ago, Aono Tsukune could not have dreamed of overpowering such a huge man by himself. The old Tsukune would have kept running until his legs gave out, and then crawled until he was absolutely sure he was safe. His time at Youkai Academy had changed him. Moka had changed him. For the better.

Growling, the man picked himself up and turned, snarling something in his foreign language.

"I don't understand you," said Tsukune firmly. He shook his head emphatically. "I cannot understand what you are saying."

"Then turn around and speak with _me_."

Tsukune turned. More people had appeared at the end of the corridor; a ragtag band of disheveled individuals, clad in dirty grey military fatigues and armed with an assortment of kitchenware. The person who had spoken was walking ahead of the others, and Tsukune noted that he was the only Asian member of the group. He was a man of indeterminate age, noticably shorter than the rest of his male companions, but only slightly taller than Tsukune. He carried a sheathed katana in his left hand.

"Who are you?" asked Tsukune, placing himself between Yukari and the swordsman.

"My name is Nanahara Shoujiki*. I am a lieutenant in the Japanese Special Forces Group, currently seconded to a United Nations task force. We mean you no harm, but I cannot guarentee your safety if you attempt to draw attention to our presence here."

Aono Tsukune was no idiot - despite what his school grades implied - and he was more than capable of joining the dots.

"You're the human terrorists," he breathed. "What are you doing here?"

The man called Nanahara shook his head. "The accusations made against us are false, young man. We are not terrorists. Highly-skilled combatants, yes, but our actions have never placed the inhabitants of the ayashi realms in immediate danger. But now is neither the time nor the place to talk of such things. Where are we?"

"The Assembly Hall."

"In Ayashakai?"

"Where else would it be?"

Nanahara looked thoughtful for a moment, and conversed with his companions in a language Tsukune recognised as English. He looked around at the human who had attacked him, and was glad to see that the man showed no intention of harming Yukari while his back was turned. Tsukune exchanged glances with the young witch, who was still trembling slightly.

_It's going to be okay_, mouthed Tsukune.

Yukari nodded, but did not look convinced. Tsukune knew that she did not have any prejudices against humans in general, but he understood her fear of these people. Some of them would be shady characters even without their unusual armaments, and despite his temperate demeanor, Nanahara had the air of a man whom others crossed at their peril.

"How tight is the security here?" asked Nanahara eventually.

Tsukune considered the question for a moment, before answering, "There's guards everywhere."

"You're lying. Tell the truth, or I will ask your friend."

"I won't let you hurt Yukari-chan!" growled Tsukune.

"Answer my question, and I will have no reason to do so."

"There are a lot of people in the public areas, and guys in jackets that could be security guards," said Tsukune. He shook his head. "I don't know. I've never been here before, and it never occurred to me to remember stuff like that."

"Very well. Thank you for being truthful. You could have simply said so to begin with," said Nanahara.

"Now answer _my_ question," said Tsukune, emboldened by the man's courtesy. "Why are you here?"

"It is a very long story, one that I do not have the time to tell," replied Nanahara. His tone warned Tsukune that such a line of questioning would yield no answers.

The man at the head of the slovenly party shook his head and said something in English. It only took Tsukune a moment to realise he was addressing the giant, and he spun around in time to grab his attacker's wrist again, arresting a blow that would have knocked him out cold had it connected. By human standards, the giant's strength was prodigious, but it paled in comparison to the power Inner Moka used against Tsukune during their training sessions.

"Tsukune-san!"

Too late, Tsukune realised that the giant was a distraction. The cold steel edge of a blade was at his throat, pressing dangerously against his windpipe. Out of the corner of his eye, Tsukune saw Yukari draw her wand out from inside her cloak, but one of the female humans leaped forward to disarm her. Tsukune cursed. Physiologically, witches were no different from humans; their anatomies were identical, and their physical capabilities relied entirely on individual body strength. The only real difference was that witches possessed the ability to manipulate youki** and subvert it to their will, and in doing so they could augment and heal their bodies. Without her magic, Yukari's only advantage over the humans was her genius-level intellect.

"Forgive me, young man," said Nanahara. "It goes against my own principles, and the captain's _modus operandi_, but I am afraid we need you to come with us."

* * *

The humans were insane.

Their intentions were a mystery to Tsukune until they marched him into the foyer of the Assembly Hall, at which point it became clear what they planned to do. Nanahara walked behind Tsukune, reaching over his shoulder to hold the blade of his weapon to Tsukune's throat, while the dark-haired man who appeared to be the leader of the group held Yukari. Silent tears ran down her cheeks. Tsukune would never forgive these people for making Yukari cry.

Someone cried out in alarm as the group entered the foyer, and immediately the crowd dispersed to move out of their path. Tsukune's assumption that the men in maroon jackets were guards turned out to be correct; several were present in the foyer, and as soon as they realised what was happening they moved in to intercept the humans. To Tsukune's disappointment, none of them revealed themselves to be particularly fearsome monsters as they shed their human disguises in response to the threat. Two were lizardmen, the third was a noppera-bo and the fourth took the form of a giant anthromorphic rat.

"Stay back," warned one of the Caucasian humans firmly. His accent was slightly odd, but his Japanese was excellent. "If anyone makes any sudden moves, or tries to seize us, then these children will die. Get out of our way."

The guards backed off warily, and Tsukune suspected that their frustration was due to the fact that mere humans were making them look incompetant, rather than the fact that hostages had been taken at all.

"What happened to not drawing attention to yourselves?" asked Tsukune, wincing as Nanahara's blade grazed the skin of his throat.

"We were compromised the moment you encountered Baranov. If we let you go, you would report our presence to your fellow monsters," explained Nanahara distractedly. "And contrary to what you may think of us, we are not callous enough to kill children to ensure their silence."

"So you use us as shields instead?"

"The lesser of two evils, wouldn't you say? Besides, it's not like we want to do this. Neither the JSFG nor the SAS approve of using human shields. Even the Americans frown upon it. Put yourself in our place, young man. We are lightly-armed humans facing overwhelming opposition. Without an appropriate deterrent, these monsters would tear us apart without hesitation. Not one of us would make it to the door."

Tsukune wanted to argue, but the man had a point. He remembered his early days at Youkai Academy, dreading confrontation with his fellow students for fear that he would slip up and reveal his true nature as a feeble human. His first experience of an ayashi's combat capabilities was his encounter with Komiya Saizo, who had thrown him around like an angry child abusing a ragdoll, and only the intervention of Inner Moka had saved him. Until he acquired vampire blood, and the power that it infused his body with, Tsukune had relied almost entirely on his friends to protect him.

These humans had no such allies. They only had each other, and even the giant called Baranov could not hope to fight his way to safety with so many ayashi opposing him. There could only be one outcome of a direct battle between these humans and the ayashi surrounding them: death. All that remained to be seen was how many monsters the humans could maim before their lives were taken from them.

The humans' relief was almost tangible as they made it out through the front door without incident. To Tsukune's surprise, the school bus was still parked at the bottom of the steps in front of the building, and the sight of the driver leaning against the side of the vehicle was reassuring. An odd feeling of doubt settled over him, and it took him a moment to realise that it was caused by the driver's reaction. Or his _lack_ of reaction. He did not seem at all perturbed as the humans descended from the Assembly Hall and made their way towards him, nor did he seem at all alarmed by the sight of two students being held against their will.

"We are taking this vehicle," stated the bi-lingual human at the head of the party.

"I know," replied the bus driver, casually exhaling smoke. "The keys are in the ignition. Bear in mind that it's nearly noon, and that the inner city roads will be congested with lunch-hour traffic in about twenty-five minutes."

"Why are you helping them?" cried Yukari. "Stop them!"

"I'm afraid I cannot, little lady. I was instructed to facilitate their escape. But fear not; as long as you stay close to your friend, you should come out of this affair relatively unscathed."

"What are you playing at?" snarled Tsukune.

The bus driver's perpetual smile broadened. "I am not a player, young man. I am merely a device to move the game to the next level."

Tsukune was bundled onto the bus before he could discern the meaning of the driver's words, and as the last of the humans scrambled aboard, the doors hissed shut with a _clack_ and the vehicle began to move. To Tsukune's relief, Yukari was no longer being held at knifepoint; she had been forced into a window seat in the middle of the bus, and Nanahara steered Tsukune into the seat next to her.

"Tsukune-san..."

Tsukune took her hand and forced a smile to his face. "It will be okay, Yukari-chan. I'll think of something."

It did not surprise him that his words did little to comfort Yukari; they barely comforted _him_. As the bus picked up speed, surpassing any of the urban speed limits Tsukune was aware of, he took a moment to consider the situation. Nine humans, all armed with melee weapons, crammed into a confined space. Fish in a barrel to the likes of Inner Moka, and a simple challenge for Tsukune now that Nanahara had released him. If he could take back Yukari's wand, then the two of them could easily take on their captors.

But he could not bring himself to attack them. Despite the fact they were under duress, neither Tsukune nor Yukari were hurt, and deep down Tsukune knew that he was sympathising with their captors. They were ordinary humans, just as he had once been, and regardless of what skills or training they possessed, they would die if they remained in Ayashakai. They had already been sentenced to death, and after their actions at the Assembly Hall, the ayashi would spare them no mercy. If Tsukune impeded their escape, these humans would never make it back to the world they came from.

"What's your plan?" he asked Nanahara.

"To survive," replied the swordsman.

"How?"

"The scholars attached to our unit did not limit their studies to your culture. They researched your weaknesses, your flaws, and devised ways to turn your strengths against you. Once we retrieve the weapons developed using their research, we will stand a chance of surviving."

"You can't take on the entire city!"

"Of course we can't. But we can fight our way through whatever defences protect the city's only portal back to the human world***."

Tsukune hesitated for a moment, then said, "There's another way."

"What?"

"There's another way back to the human world," repeated Tsukune. "There's a portal on the campus of Youkai Academy."

Nanahara regarded Tsukune with narrow eyes, as if scrutinising his words for traces of deception.

"You aren't lying," he said eventually.

"No, I'm not. I'll tell you anything you want to know, as long as you promise not to hurt Yukari-chan."

Nanahara nodded. "I'm listening."

* * *

**Fairy Tale 1st Subdivision Headquarters**

**Western District, Ayashakai  
**

**October 10th, 2015**

Contrary to the fables of supernatural fiction, vampires did not fear sunlight. It did not incinerate them, nor did it make them sparkle****. There were some who disliked it, but Shuzen Kahlua was among those who rather enjoyed the feeling of the sun's warmth on her skin.

The morning sunlight beamed into the lounge through the row of terrace windows along one wall, and the white decor glowed in a way it never could under artificial light. The terrace doors were open, allowing a cool late-morning breeze to flow in and lower the ambient temperature of the room. Seated in a white club chair, from which she could easily reach her drink on the glass coffee table, Kahlua immersed herself in a translated edition of _Journey to the West_. The only sounds disturbing the silence were the occassional rustle of turning pages, and the frequent sighs of Fujisaki Miyabi as he exhaled smoke.

Miyabi was engrossed in his work, and had said little since opening the latest dossier of research notes to be brought to him. As his employee, Kahlua had offered to help him with his work, but quickly found that very little of the information in the dossiers made sense to laymen; complex formulae and esoteric text filled their pages, along with frequent but vague references to "Jormungandr" and "the Potentials". Miyabi would not even give her a simple summary of his work. Whenever Kahlua enquired about it, he would speak cryptically of a _unique asset_, and assure her that she would learn more when the time was right.

The peaceful atmosphere was disturbed by the sound of approaching footsteps out in the corridor, gradually growing louder until the lounge door swung open. Sato Akiyo strode into the room, his supercilious manner at odds with his appearance. Even dressed in the formal uniform of a Fairy Tale agent - a black tunic with gold lining and epaulettes, with matching trousers and well-polished shoes - Sato did not cut an impressive figure. He was a scrawny little thing, and his conceited attitude came from his belief that his position as the Commander's aide made him superior to everyone but Shuzen Gyokuro herself.

Sato halted beside the sofa Miyabi was seated on and snapped to attention.

"Subdivision Leader Fujisaki. I come at the behest of Shuzen-sama," he said.

"Of course you do," replied Miyabi dryly, without looking up from his documents. "What do you want?"

"Approximately eighty minutes ago, nine humans escaped from the dungeons of Shuzen Castle. In the process of doing so, they killed three guards and sabotaged the portal linking the Shuzen Estate with the Assembly Hall here in Ayashakai. Our informant at the Assembly Hall has confirmed that the humans have taken two students from Youkai Academy hostage."

Miyabi sat back, smiling. "I see. Might one of those students be called Aono Tsukune?"

Sato blinked in surprise and consulted his clipboard. "Y-yes. How did you know?"

"Call it a hunch. So where are the humans now?"

"They are at large in the Eastern District of the city. By order of Shuzen Gyokuro - Commander-in-Chief of Fairy Tale - you are to lead the hunt for the humans and their captives. Search and destroy. You are authorised to use any means necessary to restore the honour of the Shuzen clan."

"That's a convenient excuse. Gyokuro can't risk letting the authorities to deal with this, for fear that the humans will reveal the existance of our organisation. It would spoil all her fun if the Custodians and the Assembly became aware of her plans, now wouldn't it?"

"Take this seriously, Fujisaki-sama," snapped Sato. "Shuzen-sama deemed this task important enough to send her primary aide to act as her proxy and personally oversee its undertaking. You will obey her orders without -"

"If you don't stop your sycophantic whining, lowlife, then before nightfall Gyokuro's secondary aide will be making arrangements for your funeral," said Miyabi. The cold gleam in his dark eyes promised that the threat was not hollow. He leaned forward to stub out his cigarette in the crystal ashtray on the coffee table. "If you insist on spoiling my day with your dismal presence, then make yourself useful and contact the section chiefs stationed here in the capital. I'll need their agents. My own subordinates are busy with... other tasks."

Affronted by Miyabi's insolence, Sato Akiyo's pallid face flushed red with rage, but he was wise enough to keep his mouth shut. He turned on his heel and stormed out of the room without another word, leaving Kahlua alone with Miyabi. The subdivision leader drew a fresh cigarette from the pack in his shirt pocket, and lit it with his trademark zippo lighter. Kahlua closed her book and sat upright in her chair.

"This is your doing, isn't it?" she asked.

Miyabi nodded. "Yes, it is."

"Is it part of your plan to betray my mother?"

"A betrayal can only be considered treacherous if it is unexpected, Kahlua," replied Miyabi. He rose to his feet and donned his leather jacket. "Gyokuro knows full well that I will turn against her when our interests are no longer aligned. You can't stab someone in the back if they never take their eye off you, can you?"

"I suppose not, but that doesn't answer my question," said Kahlua.

"Yes, it is part of that scheme. You could say it's the beginning of the end for Fairy Tale."

Kahlua raised her eyebrows. "Nine humans and a student can't possibly pose a threat to Fairy Tale," she said, following Miyabi out of the room.

"The student alone is a grave threat to Fairy Tale. The soldiers are just useful pawns I intend to play with for a little while."

"Surely you can't be serious!"

Miyabi chuckled. "Don't call me Shirley. If everything goes according plan, you will understand my confidence in Aono Tsukune. And don't underestimate the tenacity of humans either. Remember; the exalted Brides of Dracula were slain in close combat by a human scholar, and the count's own heart was pierced by a man suffering from mortal wounds."

"The count was careless."

"His carelessness was the result of his hubris, a flaw shared by many of your kind," said Miyabi. "Including your mother. Be careful not to walk the same path she did; that road will lead you to nothing but betrayal and failure, and eventually to your doom."

They made their way downstairs and out into the garden in front of the manor. It was one of several expensive properties owned by Fairy Tale in the Western District, the affluent residential quarter of Ayashakai. Few ayashi in the city could afford such a large and luxurious home, but the house given to Miyabi was more than his personal residence. It was the unofficial headquarters of Fairy Tale's 1st Subdivision, and the hub of both their official and clandestine operations.

A helicopter was waiting for them on the lawn, and as she gracefully climbed into the vehicle, Kahlua was disappointed to find that Sato had made himself comfortable in the passenger compartment. He flashed her a coquettish grin, which Kahlua ignored. Sato Akiyo was under the false impression that being Shuzen Gyokuro's aide made him powerful and attractive, and he flirted with Kahlua at every opportunity. She was too polite to inform him that no rank in existance would ever entitle him to woo her, and she deflected all of his attempts to become familiar with her.

"Well?" asked Miyabi, climbing into his seat and slamming the door shut behind him. The rising whine of the helicopter's engines became a muffled drone in the background.

"Seven section chiefs are currently in the capital, and so far five have responded," said Sato, checking his notes. "They await your instructions."

"We'll make our way east for now, and proceed to our quarry's location once we have confirmation of their whereabouts," answered Miyabi. As the helicopter rose from the ground, he reached across the compartment and tugged the clipboard from Sato's hands. "Which branch leaders responded to the summons?"*****

"The Wraith, the Flayer, the Harlot, the Harlequin and the Triad," said Sato.

"Strange titles," said Kahlua.

"Not as strange as the people they refer to," remarked Miyabi. "Nevertheless, they are suitable enough for the hunt."

As she looked down on the green sprawl of Ayashakai's Western District, Kahlua's thoughts drifted to her sister, Moka. Aono Tsukune was Moka's friend, and had been with her at the Shrine of the Snow Priestess. In spite of the knowledge that the aim of Miyabi's scheme was to usurp her mother, Kahlua's spirits rose at the thought of meeting Moka again. Maybe Kokoa would be there too. Kahlua hated violence and conflict - particularly when her precious sisters were involved - and she was determined to ensure that their next meeting would not lead to a repeat of their last encounter.

She was to be bitterly disappointed.

* * *

**The Assembly Hall**

**Ayashakai, Far East Realm of Ayashi**

**October 10th, 2015**

Lurking in the shadow of a decorative plant, Shirayuki Mizore observed the commotion in the foyer. Custodians - the enforcers of the law in Ayashakai - moved to and fro, collecting statements from the distressed witnesses gathered in the chamber, noting down each person's take on events before moving on to repeat the process. Mizore had no idea what had happened here, but she was beginning to worry. Tsukune and Yukari were nowhere to be found, and there was talk that one of the private portals reserved for an Assembly Member had been destroyed. That explained the abnormal flare of energy that Mizore had sensed a while ago, but it did not explain what had happened to Tsukune.

She considered returning to the cafeteria, where their tour guide had herded the class at the behest of his superiors. Concerned for Tsukune's safety, Mizore had slipped away from the tour group unnoticed, determined to find Tsukune and make sure that he was safe. If Yukari was with him, so much the better, but Mizore would not waste time looking for her until she had found Tsukune. Maybe they had gotten lost, and had found the others in her absence?

Just as she got ready to move, Mizore detected a change in the atmosphere of the foyer, coinciding with the arrival of an imposing woman clad in a black lace gown. The Custodians snapped to attention and saluted as she entered the room, and the woman returned the gesture with a polite wave of acknowledgement. She began conversing with one of the senior Custodians, and Mizore watched her with wide eyes.

It was Akashiya Moka.

Her waist-length pink hair, angelic facial features and kind smile were identical to Moka's, but on closer examination Mizore noted several subtle variations between Moka and the newcomer. The woman was older than Moka, and slightly taller, and her overall appearance gave her an air of confidence and experience that seemed more similar to Inner Moka's mannerisms than those of her external counterpart.

Mizore could not hear their conversation, but whatever the Custodian was saying dismayed the woman, who eventually smiled politely and nodded to the man before making her way deeper into the building. Intrigued, Mizore slid out of her hiding place and stealthily followed Moka's doppelganger, taking great care not to be seen by anyone. It was not a simple task, but Shirayuki Mizore was skilled at moving around without drawing attention to herself. Stealth was one of the key skills in Mizore's repertoire, and one that she could not imagine living without.

She followed her target for several minutes, keeping her distance but never letting the woman out of her sight. The woman walked as if she knew where she was going, indicating that this was not her first visit to the Assembly Hall, and she paid no attention to the distinct signs declaring that the areas beyond them were out of bounds for visitors. It was as if she held greater authority than anyone likely to challenge her.

The woman disappeared into a chamber marked _Private - Assembly Members Only_, and Mizore quietly approached the door, risking a furtive glance into the room beyond. It was a brightly-lit hall, the walls of which were lined with doors. Each apparently led to the home of an Assembly Member, enabling them to travel to and from the Assembly Hall without using the public gateways connecting the ayashi settlements. The woman seemed interested in only one of these exclusive portals, a damaged door that revealed nothing but a bare patch of wall when she opened it curiously.

The sign above it read _Shuzen Issa_.

The woman concluded her examination of the door and reached into the satchel at her hip. She took out a gilded hand mirror and uttered a command as if expecting it to obey. As Mizore watched, a kaleidoscopic vortex of light and colour appeared in the glass of the mirror, gradually resolving into a distinct image.

"Akasha-san. It is good to hear from you again," said a familiar voice.

"Likewise, Mikogami," replied the woman. "Pleasantries aside, I would like you to explain yourself."

"Explain myself?"

"I am not in the mood for games. You know what I am talking about."

"That's a pity. The present situation is a game of sorts, you know."

"And I take it you are one of the players?"

"Yes."

The woman sighed impatiently. "Explain."

"Aono Tsukune's current plight is a necessary trial," said Mikogami. "If all goes according to plan, the boy will evolve into the champion we need to lead the fight against the Masked King and Fairy Tale."

"And if the plan goes wrong?" asked the woman.

"He dies."

Mizore's eyes widened.

"How did you arrange for the surviving UN observers to escape from Fairy Tale?" asked the woman.

"I didn't," replied Mikogami. "My opponent did. I merely manipulated existing arrangements for Aono Tsukune's class to visit the Assembly Hall, ensuring that the two events coincided. Like two chess players arranging their respective pieces on the board, we autonomously took action to instigate the boy's kidnapping at the hands of the soldiers. However, none of this would have been possible had you not brought Fairy Tale's existance to the attention of the human United Nations. For that, I thank you, Akasha-san."

The woman said nothing. Mizore could not see her expression, but the woman's reserved silence was more unsettling than any verbal outburst.

"I am going to intervene," she said eventually.

"Yes, I thought you might. All the arrangements have been made; our mutual friend awaits you with a car, and a means of pinpointing Aono Tsukune's location. Godspeed, as they say in the Old Covens."

"Goodbye, Mikogami."

The woman tilted the mirror to the side, dispelling the image of Youkai Academy's Chairman, and carefully slipped the mirror back into her satchel. She stood motionless for several moments, then glanced over her shoulder with a smile.

"How long do you intend to lurk out there, yuki-onna?" she enquired lightly.

Mizore blanched, but she did not make the mistake of moving. Only rookie stalkers risked moving when their targets suspected their presence; doing so only confirmed that you were there and, more often than not, if you stayed still then your target would reconsider and dismiss the signs of your presence as paranoria on their part. This woman, however, had not only detected Mizore's presence, but partially discerned her identity too. The fact that Mizore was deliberately suppressing her aura meant that the woman's senses were keen enough to pick up on minute traces of youki.

Reluctantly, Mizore stepped into the room, discreetly forming a dart of compacted ice in her hand. The woman cocked her head to the side curiously.

"That skirt... you're a student at Youkai Academy, aren't you?" she asked.

"Yes," murmered Mizore warily.

"You must be a classmate of Aono Tsukune. And of Akashiya Moka."

"Yes," repeated Mizore. "Tsukune is my... precious person."

The woman seemed taken aback for a moment, but then she beamed and began to laugh. Just like Moka.

"Then you _must_ be one of Moka's friends," she said, clapping her hands together. "Which one are you? Kurono-chan? Shirayuki-chan? Sendo-chan?"

"Shirayuki. I'm Shirayuki Mizore."

"Ah, it's nice to finally meet you. Moka has mentioned you all in her letters. I'm her mother; Akasha Bloodriver."

_That explains so much_.

"What happened to Tsukune?" asked Mizore.

Akasha's expression became sober. "The Chairman of Youkai Academy, fool that he is, has manipulated Aono-kun into taking part in one of his schemes. He claims that it is for Aono-kun's benefit and, in the long run, for our benefit too, but I am not convinced. You heard everything, didn't you?"

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It saves me the trouble of explaining it to you later, and you can help me break the news to Moka."

Mizore nodded. "If you're going looking for Tsukune, she will go with you."

"And what about you?" asked Akasha. "The way you described your relationship with Aono-kun tells me that you won't stay put, either."

"I will follow Tsukune wherever he goes," said Shirayuki Mizore.

Akasha's smile widened. "Then let's go and find him, shall we?"

* * *

**Warehouse 115  
**

**Eastern District, Ayashakai  
**

**October 10th, 2015  
**

The bus eventually came to a halt in front of an old, run-down warehouse in Ayashakai's Eastern District, and before the vehicle had even stopped moving the humans were rushing out of the door in an urgent but disciplined manner. They waited by the broad metal door while their leader fumbled with a loose brick in the building's front wall, prying it loose to retrieve the key hidden in the cavity behind it. After removing the lock, the humans threw open the door and disappeared into the gloom within, leaving Tsukune and Yukari alone with Nanahara and the youngest member of their group.

"The Custodians will be here shortly," said Nanahara, turning to address Tsukune. "We will make a show of holding you hostage, but as soon as we are done here we will hand the girl over to the authorities and make our way to Youkai Academy. We'll let _you_ go as soon as we're back in the human world."

"How can we trust you?" asked Tsukune.

"We're professionals."

"They say the Shuzens are too," said Yukari quietly. "Could you trust them?"

"I would sooner carve out my own heart than place my life in the hands of a Shuzen," admitted Nanahara.

Without warning, Tsukune's ears popped, and moments later the black human emerged from the warehouse with an assault rifle in his hands. He mounted the bus and held out a heavy amulet to the girl sitting behind the vacant driver's cabin.

"The boss says you've gotta keep hold of this," he said by way of explanation. His Japanese was flawless.

"Are you all fluent in Japanese?" he asked.

At his side, Yukari shook her head. "We're speaking English now, Tsukune-san."

"Eh?"

"That girl has a Linguistic Manipulator. They're usually used by diplomats and ambassadors when they visit foreign ayashi settlements. It's a device that generates a magical field with a radius of one hundred metres, and anyone within that field automatically becomes fluent in the native language of the device's wearer. I knew what it was as soon as my ears popped." ******

The black human laughed. "Man, of all the witches we could've snatched, we went and grabbed us a real Hermione Granger."

"The witch from _Harry Potter_?" asked Nanahara.

"Yeah."

"The actress who portrayed her in the movies is quite an attractive woman."

"If that's your thing," conceded the black man. He gestured to Tsukune and Yukari. "C'mon, the boss says we've got to make you sit outside, so the cops can see you when they show up."

Recalling Nanahara's promise to release Yukari if they co-operated, Tsukune took the young witch by the hand and led her down to the front of the bus, stepping out into the late-morning sunshine under the vigilant gaze of the human with the rifle. The bus had stopped in the middle of a wide street between two rows of warehouses, all of which were sealed shut and showed no signs of recent use. At the far end of the street, the road was cordoned off by a high mesh fence, beyond which appeared to be a vast valley or a wide crack in the earth.

"What's over there?" asked Tsukune curiously.

"The underworld," replied Yukari.

Before Tsukune could ask for an explanation, he and Yukari were instructed to kneel in the space between the bus and the old warehouse, facing west with their backs to the truncated end of the street. Tsukune removed his green blazer and laid it down on the ground, sparing Yukari the discomfort of kneeling on her bare knees. The other humans emerged from the warehouse, laden with weapons, military-style webbing and bags of equipment, which they deposited on the bus before going back for more.

"Alexander says you and I have to stall the coppers, yank," said one of the men, wandering over to where Tsukune and Yukari knelt with their hands on their heads. He too had a rifle, and several holstered pistols were clipped to his webbing.

"Great, as if my day couldn't get any fuckin' worse," grumbled the black man. "Babysitting a couple of kids with the limey. Fan-fuckin'-tastic."

"Shove it up your arse, jarhead. Just keep an eye out for Old Bill."

"Who the fuck is Old Bill?"

"The police, you bloody nobhead."

"Excuse me, _guv'nor_, but that ain't what we call the Five-O back in the states."

The two men were still trading insults when Yukari brought the arrival of the Custodians to their attention. It was Tsukune's first time seeing the police force of Ayashakai in action, and he was surprised - and slightly disappointed - to see that they all wore their human disguises as they climbed out of their vehicles. There was at least a dozen of them, but none came within three hundred yards of the humans and their prisoners.

"They know we mean business," remarked the white human.

"Yeah. The boss made a good call putting the kids out in the open like this," agreed the black soldier, cocking his weapon. "Just gotta hope these freaks don't have snipers."

"The Custodians don't use firearms," said Yukari.

"You sure 'bout that, Hermione?"

"My name is Sendo Yukari."

"Sure. I'm Staff Sergeant Hayden, UNSOG. This here's Cross, but you can call him _limey_, 'cause he is a damn limey."

"Call him _yanker_," retorted the man called Cross, jerking a thumb at Hayden. "Because he's a yank _and_ a wanker."

"Smart-ass. Remind me to beat the shit outta you when we get back to the real world."

Tsukune wondered how the men could be so relaxed in the presence of the Custodians, but then he remembered Nanahara mentioning that the group had access to weapons designed to kill ayashi. Had he been referring to the guns Cross and Hayden were now armed with? They did not look much different from the weapons Tsukune had seen in American action movies. Maybe the guns were just for show, and the real anti-ayashi weapons were being loaded onto the bus.

"This is just the vanguard," said Yukari, staring ahead at the Custodians. "More will come."

Tsukune couldn't tell if she was trying to intimidate or provoke their captors in some way, or if she was trying to reassure herself. He decided it was the latter, for a quick glance around showed that neither of the humans seemed at all troubled by their antagonists.

"Faced worse in Colombia back in 2013," said Cross. His tone almost sounded conversational. "It was me, Alexander and a couple of the other lads up against Santiago's paramilitary group. They were geared up for World War III, and all we had were a couple of spoons and a few guns we took from the guards we killed."

"Did you win?" asked Tsukune.

Cross shrugged. "I'm alive. Does that count?"

Tsukune was spared the effort of replying as Yukari jubilantly declared, "They're here!"

Sure enough, a trio of black trucks rumbled into the street behind the makeshift roadblock the Custodians had formed with their cars, and the two humans brought their rifles up to their shoulders in anticipation of imminent combat. Tsukune hoped that they would not fire; as much as he wanted to help them escape from the city, he couldn't stomach the idea of them gunning down police officers from behind their living shields.

Cross cocked his weapon. "Something isn't right," he said warily.

"Yeah. My gut's telling me to grab cover," replied Hayden.

Tsukune shared their unease, but he was unable to identify the factor that was causing it. Then it struck him; the cars used by the Custodians were silver, but the chasis of the trucks were painted an ominous black, and were bare of the decals and insignia displayed on the patrol vehicles. The Custodians themselves seemed bewildered, as if they did not recognise their reinforcements, and two moved away from the roadblock to approach the lead truck. The passenger-side window rolled down as the truck ground to a halt.

Two gunshots rang out in quick succession.

"Oh shit!" yelped Hayden, dropping to one knee and bringing his weapon up. "Boss! We got a situation here!"

Taken by surprise, the Custodians had virtually no time to respond to the new threat. Tsukune saw three shudder and fall as gunfire tore into them, and their comrades cried out in alarm as they dashed for cover. Men clad in black and gold uniforms were deploying from the black trucks and advancing on the roadblock, firing assault rifles similar to those wielded by Cross and Hayden.

"M16s?" breathed Cross.

"What the fuck are youse two doing?" bellowed a voice behind Tsukune. "Get the kids back on the fucking bus!"

"Alexander, the coppers are -"

"I've got eyes!" snapped the leader of the humans. Like his subordinates, he had equipped himself with a number of sidearms and grenades, and he held his own rifle in a way that spoke of years of experience. "Get the kids on the bus, now!"

Tsukune rose to his feet without further instruction, and he helped Yukari up before following their captors back to the bus. The lead truck rammed into the roadblock, slowly but surely pushing two of the Custodian's vehicles aside. The humans opened fire on it while Hayden ushered Yukari and Tsukune back onto the bus. He seemed more like a worried supervisor rather than an armed captor.

"What's happening?" asked the young woman with the translation device.

"The Custodians are under attack," answered Yukari. "There are more men with guns out there!"

Either satisfied that they had enough equipment, or not willing to risk staying stationary any longer than necessary, all but one of the humans climbed back onto the bus. The man called Baranov smashed the rear window with the stock of his weapon and began to fire through the gap. The overlapping thunderclaps of gunfire reverberated in the narrow confines of the bus' interior, and spent rounds clattered as they fell to the floor.

"Bulletproof glass," he spat. He stopped firing and backed away from the window. "Brace!"

Tsukune yelped as the bus lurched violently, and he scrambled into the seat beside Yukari. The bus was moving forward, but not under its own power; one of the black trucks had rammed into it from behind, and was pushing it down the street at an alarming speed. The human in the driver's cabin cursed loudly and fumbled to reach something under his seat.

"Turn the wheel!" shouted Yukari.

"No, don't! We'll present a larger target if we face them side-on!" barked the leader.

"But we're headed straight for Naraka!"

"Jackson! Get that fucking engine started _now_!"

"I dropped the bloody keys!" shouted the driver.

"You stupid twat!" wailed Cross.

The front of the bus clashed against the mesh fence at the end of the street. It clattered and buckled dangerously, but it did not yield. The hair on the back of Tsukune's neck rose as he sensed the talismans fixed to the fence posts emitting high levels of youki, and his blood froze as he realised that such measures would not have been taken to augment the barrier unless there was a real need for them.

"What's Naraka?" he asked Yukari breathlessly.

"The domain of the outcast ayashi," gasped the witch. "A chaotic cesspit where the cruellest ayashi and true monsters of Ayashakai live."

Before Tsukune could respond, the magical field reinforcing the fence's structure gave out with a loud bang. The deformed section of the fence snapped free of its fixture and was flattened under the bus as it rolled forward. Yukari threw her arms around Tsukune with a wail of terror, and Tsukune wrapped one arm around her while grabbing hold of the seat in front of him. The driver hastily abandoned his position and scrambled into the passenger section of the bus.

"_Hang on_!" he screamed, as the view through the windscreen behind him whirled into a vertiginous blur of colour.

* * *

Daniel Moore gave a wordless cry of horror and disbelief as he watched the bus topple over the edge of the precipice and disappear from view. There was a thunderous series of crashes, gradually replaced with an ominous silence, and Moore dropped to his knees in despair. They were gone. Jackson, the captain, Hayden, fiesty Doc Vokes, the kids... all gone, just like that. Moore wanted to weep. He wanted to scream his frustration and his grief until his throat was raw.

_They had come so close_. They had endured seven long, painful days in the dungeons of Shuzen Castle. They had sustained no casualties during their escape from that nightmare, and even after their discovery at the Assembly Hall, they had made it to the supply dump without incident. Why had their luck failed them now? Just as the tables were beginning to turn in their favour...

Curt voices snapped at him in Japanese.

Powerful hands grabbed at Moore and a pair of black-clad men wrestled him to the ground while three others kept him covered with their weapons. Converting his sorrow into rage, Moore resisted, mustering all of the strength and stamina the Special Air Service of Australia had trained into him. It was futile. His opponents were more numerous, and despite their appearances, both men possessed strength equal - or perhaps even greater - to his own. His wrists were cuffed tightly, and the same hands that had forced him to the ground relieved him of his newly-acquired weapons before hauling him to his feet. He did not understand what the men were saying to him. The average Western otaku possessed a greater understanding of Japanese than Daniel Moore.

The whirring drone of a helicopter filled the air, and the vehicle emitting the sound flew in low over the street. As helpless as a restless child in the grip of the monsters, Moore was marched towards the helicopter as it set down in the middle of the road. The gyration of its rotors kicked up a small storm of dust and litter. Moore was forced to his knees as the dust subsided and the helicopter's passenger doors opened. A handsome man in a dark leather trench coat hopped out of the vehicle, followed by a tanned beauty in a white gown and an ugly little man dressed in the same uniform as the men who were pinning Moore down.

"Hello there," said the man in the trench coat, raising his voice to be heard over the wail of the helicopter's idling engines. "Looks like you missed the bus, huh? Too bad. I'm afraid that disqualifies you from the game, soldier. What's your name?"

Moore remained silent. One of the men leaning on his shoulders slapped him hard across the back of the head and said something tersely in Japanese.

"It doesn't really matter. I just wanted to know which of my pawns had fallen off the board," said the man. He wedged a fresh cigarette between his lips and waved the packet in an inviting manner. "Coffin nail?"

"No," replied Moore.

"Ah, so you _can_ understand me. Good. I was beginning to think my English was rusty."

Far from it; his English was perfect. The man's pronunciation was excellent, and his accent could have convinced Moore that he had grown up in New York. The man lit his own cigarette and tucked his lighter away as he crouched down to bring his face level with Moore's.

"You're upset. Don't be; I can guarentee that all of your comrades will outlive you. The children you took from the Assembly Hall certainly will."

"How do you know?" asked Moore.

"Because the game has only just begun," replied the man. "See, a few months ago, I became acquainted with the seeress who rules over the winter wonderland of the yuki-onna. She was a very formal and downright boring woman, but the spirit dwelling inside her was quite an interesting fellow. We talked. I had questions about the future, and it had great knowledge of events yet to pass. In exchange for not killing its host and her people, the Jack Frost told me how Aono Tsukune would make my dream a reality."

"What dream?" asked Moore.

"To create a new world."

Moore snorted. "Impossible."

"For an ordinary man, yes," agreed the man. He leaned in closer, and his voice barely rose above a whisper. "But then, I'm not an ordinary man, am I?"

Moore stared into the man's eyes. They were cold and dark, like the depths of an icy lake, and his pupils were like polished discs of black marble. A terrible chill gripped Moore's heart. His felt his soul quail under the man's penetrating gaze, and for the first time in a long time, Moore experienced true fear. Even his torment at the hands of the interrogators at Shuzen Castle had not terrified him like this. The man extended the fingertips of his right hand and gently placed them against Moore's chest, as if to feel the frantic palpitations of his heart.

"What are you?" breathed Daniel Moore.

"I am the harbinger of an ideal future," replied Fujisaki Miyabi, thrusting his arm forward.

* * *

Cal's Annotations

***** - We had to change Nanahara's given name. _Shinji_ is a surname. The replacement - _Shoujiki_ - means _honesty_, and I include it as a reference to the novel that inspired this story.

****** - Not to be confused with "youkai", a word commonly used in the same context as "monster" in the manga. "Youki" refers to the aura and power most ayashi possess. It's kind of similar to the concept of reiryoku/reiatsu used by shinigami in the manga series _Bleach_.

******* - For security reasons, there are no public portals directly connecting Ayashakai to the human world. Not only does this decrease the chances of humans stumbling directly into the heart of ayashi society in the Far East, but it also prevents monsters from crossing over to the human world en mass (zerg rush!) or without an adequate human disguise. In order to cross over to the human world, residents of Ayashakai have to apply for a travel permit, and pass through a portal maintained and monitored by the Custodians. This is** not** canon material.

******** - _Vampires do not fecking sparkle_. Only fairies and pixies sparkle.

********* - Fairy Tale's structure is somewhat vague in the manga. In this story, Fairy Tale consists of a command echelon and six Subdivisions, each made up of numerous branches led by a section/branch chief. An unofficial domestic division garrisons the Floating Garden, answering directly to the Commander herself. This is **not** canon material.

********** - This device was inspired by the translation capabilities of Mokona from _Tsubasa: Reservoir__ Chronicles_ and the eponymous Doctor from _Doctor Who_. Both have magical/telepathic abilities that enable their companions to communicate with people/creatures from worlds that do not speak their language. This will help Tsukune interact with the English-speaking humans. Celt and I figured that giving all the humans the skill to speak Japanese perfectly would be unrealistic, given how complex the language is, and we didn't want to limit Tsukune's interaction to just Nanahara, Jackson and Amy. Thus the Linguistic Manipulator was introduced.

* * *

**Celt: **Wow, this chapter was a lot longer than its predecessors. The word count? "_It's over 9000_!" Yeah, it's not much compared to some fics, but it's still bigger than the first three chapters put together.

Tsukune and Yukari are up shit creek, and Miyabi has assumed the role of Game Master. The aptly-named section chiefs he mentioned will make their debut in the next chapter. Kahlua is a lot more mature in this story - she is usually very girly and cheerful in the manga, but she gets serious when she is on the job, and in this story she is on Miyabi's payroll. (Which is why she isn't back home at Shuzen Castle.)

Oh yeah, the bus driver isn't out of work now that his beloved bus fell off a cliff. We've got plans for him...

Stay tuned for the next chapter! :)


	5. Into the Fire

Hello again, and here we are at last with the latest chapter of _Who Dares Wins_. I am sorry that it took us so long to update this, but I moved house a couple of weeks ago and Cal has been very busy with work and life and stuff. Hopefully our next update will not take so long. Over the last few days, Cal added more stuff to previous chapters along with this update. Mostly the prologue, but with a few annotations explaining things at the end of the other chapters. Be sure to check it out!

Jdog2012: Cal said the same thing about POWs and revealing their units, but I wanted to put it in. Also "murder" can be used in various ways, not just killing innocent people. It generally means to **intentionally** kill someone and it was appropriate in the context we used it in. The guards were caught unawares and had no chance to defend themselves against Cross, who acted deliberately, and with murderous intent. So murder is a valid term.

Ok, here we go! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Rosario + Vampire, or any of the names, characters, locations and organisations which feature in the manga. This is a fan-made, non-profit work of fiction based on Akihisa Ikeda's fantastic manga, which I urge all of you to buy and enjoy when it becomes available in your country. Any resemblance the content of this story shares with real events or people is a coincidence.**

**Chapter 04 - Into the Fire  
**

* * *

**Naraka, Ayashakai**

**October 10th, 2015**

Aono Tsukune had suffered his fair share of migraines, but the maelstrom that seemed to be swirling his brain around inside his skull was more intense than any headache he had ever experienced. It was not just his head that hurt; his whole body felt sore and bruised, and his pain-addled mind was unable to recall what had befallen him. Had he lost a fight? Was Moka safe?

He registered the sensation of firm hands on his face, and Tsukune groaned as his left eye was forced open, only for his sight to be robbed by the merciless glare of the sun.

"You bumped your noddle pretty hard, but I don't see any cause for concern," reported a husky female voice. The sun winked out of existance, and a hand patted Tsukune on the cheek. "Lucky you. Rise and shine, kiddo. If you want to lie here all day, you'll be all by yourself. We're moving out."

As his numb mind began to wake up, life returned to Tsukune's limbs and he mustered the strength to sit up. He had been lying amid a litter of kit bags and boxes on the ceiling of the school bus, and in the gloom he could make out the shapes of his human captors moving about as they gathered up their equipment. The bus was upside down. Why was the bus upside down?

"Where..." murmered Tsukune, peering around in the half-light.

"Your little friend hasn't come round yet," said the woman who had examined him. "Don't worry, she isn't hurt. Cross is looking after her outside. She's light enough for one of us to carry, but you aren't, and the captain was considering leaving you behind. Lieutenant Nanahara insists that you will be useful, but I share the captain's belief that a bergen full of ammunition and two hands free to hold a gun will be of more use than the dead weight of a senseless guide."

Still dazed from his ordeal, Tsukune simply nodded and concentrated on standing up without hitting his head on the back of a seat. As his eyes became accustomed to the low light, Tsukune was surprised to find that the bus was virtually intact; only the rear window was broken, and that had been the Russian man's doing, not a result of the fall. The bus had always seemed like such a simple thing, and Tsukune had never considered the idea that it had been augmented with magic to protect its occupants from violent collisions. He wondered if the bus driver was responsible for whatever protective measures had been installed.

Tsukune shuffled down to the front of the bus, carefully making his way past the humans as they geared up, and climbed out of the up-turned vehicle through the open door. He stepped out into a pool of light surrounding the stricken bus, and as he shielded his eyes to look up, the fog clouding Tsukune's memory began to clear. After the aggressive black truck forced it through the fence seperating the Eastern District from Naraka, the bus had fallen onto the roof of a ramshackle building, crashing through at least four floors before landing in the dark chamber Tsukune now found himself standing in. He could not remember what had knocked him out, but he recalled the bone-jarring impacts of the bus crashing through the floors above his head, and the terrifying sensation of the G-force hauling him out of his seat. Gunfire echoed through the building, and Tsukune winced as it provoked his headache.

"You're awake," said a curt voice at his side. "Good. Make yourself useful and sling this over your shoulder, eh?"

A backpack that seemed to weigh as much as the bus itself was pushed into Tsukune's arms, and the man moved away before Tsukune could protest. He shouldered the bag and watched as the human began screwing a black cylinder onto the barrel of his rifle. Tsukune tried to remember the man's name. Hayden had referred to the man as "the boss", while Cross had simply called him "Alexander". Based on the manner in which all the other humans obeyed and deferred to him, the man was clearly the leader of the group. He seemed confident and steadfast, despite the dire situation he and his men faced*****, but Tsukune still felt a strong disinclination to fully trust the man. He could not banish the memory of Yukari crying while Alexander held a blade at her throat. As if sensing Tsukune's resentment, Alexander looked around at him.

"Aruno, was it?" he asked.

"_Aono_. Aono Tsukune."

"Right, _Aono_. I'm sorry for dragging you into this, mate, but there's no point crying over spilled beer. You're up shit creek now, and I doubt that the fact that you're a monster will get you a free lunch around here. From what we've gathered, this _Naraka_ dump is supposed to be a dog-eat-dog shithole where it's every man and freak for himself, so unless you're a vampire or some dark arts expert, it would be in your best interest to stick with us."

"I guess so," said Tsukune, rubbing his head. "Do you have a plan?"

"Sort of. Jackson was hurt bad in the fall, so we'll go to ground and hide somewhere until Doc Vokes patches him up, and we'll decide on our next move while we wait."

"That's not much of a plan."

"You got a better idea?"

Tsukune shook his head. "I never came to Ayashakai before today, so I don't know much about this place. Yukari-chan will be able to tell us more about it."

"All the more reason for us to set up camp somewhere and hold out until we're all fit to move on. Your wee friend is still out cold, but she's light enough for one of us to carry without much effort, so we'll bring her with us."

"I will carry her," said Tsukune.

The captain shook his head. "Cross will. I want your hands free. Baranov told me how you floored him at the Assembly Hall, and I saw the way you blocked his punch earlier. Gregori Baranov is a decorated veteran of the Russian Spetsnaz, and he's a hard bastard even by their shit-scary standards, so the fact that you were able to handle him so easily says a lot about your abilities."

Tsukune accepted the indirect compliment with a nod. "Why can't we stay here?" he asked.

"It's only a matter of time before those arseholes who shoved us off the cliff come down to confirm their kill," replied the captain, cocking his weapon. "Even if they take their time, the natives of this shithole know we're here. Dunno about you, but I'm not keen on the idea of getting swarmed and eaten in a place like this. Baranov's scaring the freaks away for now, but it's only a matter of time before the big bastards show up looking for fresh meat."

"Won't moving your friend Jackson be bad for his health?"

"Not as bad as some fuck-ugly freak with more teeth than brain cells chowing down on him like a Big Mac," replied Alexander dryly. "Right, youse lot, move your arses! We're moving out in two minutes!"

Sensing that their conversation was over, Tsukune left Alexander and made his way across the rubble-strewn floor to where Cross was concluding his own preparations. Yukari was lying at his feet, and Tsukune dropped onto his knees beside her. A cursory examination revealed that she too had suffered no obvious external injuries, but Tsukune lacked the medical knowledge to be certain. He flinched back as Cross pointed something at his face, but then took the item the human held out to him. It was Yukari's wand.

"Is she really a witch?" asked Cross, lifting Yukari and draping her limp form over his shoulder.

"Yes," replied Tsukune, stowing the wand in the backpack he had been burdened with.

Cross nodded and grinned. "She weighs more than a duck, though."

"What?"

"Never mind."

One by one, the humans assembled at the side of the up-turned bus, laden with equipment and carrying a variety of guns. The giant called Baranov emerged from the inky darkness with a flashlight strapped to the shoulder of his webbing, leaving both of his hands free to carry a portable machine gun. He jerked his shaven head in the direction he had come from.

"Door over that way, captain," he reported. "A way out."

"Alright. Once we get outside, shoot anything that looks hungry," replied Alexander. "Let's go."

The captain's words were met with the metallic _clacking_ of weapons being primed. Baranov moved on ahead, leading the way with his shoulder-mounted flashlight. Supported by the two female members of the group, the man called Jackson hobbled along in front of Cross and Yukari, and Tsukune found himself at the rear of the party with Hayden. The black man grinned and patted Tsukune encouragingly on the shoulder before pushing him out of the pool of light shining down on the school bus. As the darkness enveloped him, Tsukune wondered if he would ever see it again.

The door Baranov had found was the main entrance to the building, and in the light shining in through empty window frames, Tsukune saw several ayashi lying in a glossy pool of their collective blood. Their bodies were mangled masses of ruined flesh and cracked chitin, and one was still twitching as its nerves spasmed.

"What happened here?" he asked.

"Curiosity killed the cat," replied Baranov bluntly, patting the light machine gun he carried.

Tsukune was appalled by the giant's casual indifference to killing, but he held his tongue and followed the humans outside. His eyes watered as he stepped out into the dazzling daylight, and he raised a hand to shield his eyes. He balked. A rabble of undisguised ayashi were gathered in the street outside, forming a wide half-circle around the humans and Tsukune like a pack of wolves cornering their prey against a crag. They were bizarre, nightmarish creatures who glared at the intruders with baleful eyes that gleamed with malicious intelligence. Tsukune was able to identify several distinct species, but the majority of them were ill-favored hybrids who reminded him of the outcast ayashi who had caused a great deal of trouble at Youkai Academy prior to the last School Festival.

"Bollocks," groaned Cross loudly.

"It's like the Eclipse scene from _Berserk_," breathed the girl with the translation device.******

Tsukune swallowed. "Did you prepare for something like this?"

"Sure we did," said Hayden firmly. He faltered and glanced at Alexander. "Didn't we?"

"Aye. Lieutenant, let's break bread with the natives."

Nanahara unslung his backpack and reached into it, pulling out a hideous melon-like object with a thorn-covered husk and a trio of slobbering mouths. Tsukune recoiled from it, recalling his past experience with Monster Dorians. Nanahara stabbed the dorian several times with his combat knife, and the air filled with a sickening stench like blood. He rose and hurled the object towards the ayashi approaching from the left, who tilted their heads back to track its trajectory as it sailed over them. Crimson fluid leaked from the wounds on the dorian's husk, raining down on the ayashi below it, who gave a greedy howl of glee and rushed to claim it, shoving and tackling each other in their desperation to reach it first. The other half of the throng hesitated, bewildered by the sudden change of heart displayed by their kin, but fell for the same ploy as Nanahara lobbed another bleeding dorian into their midst.

Like the Red Sea parting before Moses, the rabble of hostile ayashi dispersed, fighting among themselves for the foul delicacies.

"Move!" barked Alexander, leading by example.

* * *

**Warehouse 115**

**Eastern District, Ayashakai**

**October 10th, 2015**

The strong, coppery scent of human blood never failed to arouse Kahlua's vampiric thirst, but as always dignity and honour kept her true nature in check. Like her father, Shuzen Kahlua adhered to the Noble Way, which forbade a vampire from consuming the blood of the dead unless it belonged to an enemy they had personally slain in combat. Fujisaki Miyabi had killed the human; the right to drink the man's blood was his alone.

Even though he had washed his hand with herbal water procured by one of his subordinates, a lingering aroma of the human's blood remained on Miyabi's hand. Not enough to provoke Kahlua's baser instincts, but enough to distract her from time to time. She was grateful that Miyabi insisted she accompany him as he inspected the contents of the humans' supply dump; the body of the man he executed had been disposed of, but a copious amount of blood soaked the ground outside the warehouse.

_That_ was hard to ignore.

The section chiefs arrived shortly after Miyabi began his casual tour of the warehouse, but only when they were all present did he address them. Sato Akiyo had long since given up on trying to spur Miyabi on and pursue their quarry into Naraka, and had wandered off in a huff - no doubt in search of a radio to contact the Commander and complain about Miyabi's insolence - so the briefing session was not as tedious as Kahlua feared it would be. Before starting, Miyabi took a few moments to briefly introduce Kahlua to each of the section chiefs. His earlier statement that they were strange turned out to be true; Kahlua had seldom seen such a peculiar band of people gathered in one room.

The Harlot introduced herself as Misaki Aiko, section chief of the Third Subdivision's Third Branch. She was a voluptuous woman of indeterminate age, dressed in an expensive kimono made of lavender silk, boldly loosened at the front to reveal the dark valley of her cleavage. The sight of it made Kahlua subconsciously fold her arms and cover her own, a gesture that made the Harlot smile smugly. Misaki was accompanied by a host of forty men, dim-witted creatures who jostled at the door of the warehouse to get a good view of their beloved mistress.

Standing apart from his fellows, the section chief known as the Wraith was by far the most disturbing. Were it not for the thin, unnaturally pale arms protruding from the loose sleeves of his filthy black robe, Kahlua could have been convinced that the Wraith did not possess a body. Even her vampiric eyesight could not discern anything in the shadow of his hood, from the depths of which came slow, rattling gasps akin to those of a dying man. In one bony hand, the Wraith clutched a T-shaped staff that was longer than he was tall, and a macabre collection of severed fingers and rotting eyeballs hung on hooks at the ends of the rusting chains draped over the crossbar.

Konagawa Teru was hailed as the Flayer. He was a thin, bespectacled youth with tidy blond hair, dressed in a tailored suit and a long black coat made of cotton. He smiled constantly, as if the situation amused him, and his smile widened slightly as he greeted Kahlua with a nod. Konagawa was technically the first section chief to arrive - Kahlua had seen him among the first Fairy Tale operatives on site, but it was not until he entered the warehouse that she learned his rank. While the monikers of all the other section chiefs reflected their appearances, Konagawa did not suit the title of _Flayer_; he had the aspect of a thinker, not a fighter, and his kindly demeanor made it difficult to imagine him hurting anyone, let alone flaying them. Kahlua wondered if his nickname was meant to be a joke of some sort.

Had Skoru the Harlequin arrived before Konagawa, Kahlua would have assumed that _he_ was the Flayer. The Harlequin was by far the tallest of the party, clad in an ankle-length sable duster, beneath which he wore a black breastplate emblazoned with a ribcage made of steel. The form-fitting steel helm that encased his head had been fashioned to resemble a leering skull. A pair of golden eyes with horizontal slits for pupils glared out from the dark hollows of the mask's eye sockets. The Flayer's contribution to the hunting party was a contigent of twenty masked ayashi armed with flintlock rifles, fixed with hooked blades in place of traditional bayonets.

The last to arrive were the three men referred to as the Triad. They were clearly triplets, but the resemblance between them was remarkable. Everything about them - from their expressionless facial features to the physical dimensions of their lean bodies - was identical, and they walked as if their movements were synchronized. Miyabi greeted them individually, and in unison the triplets bowed their heads respectfully to him. Their names were Naka, Hidari and Migi, and to Kahlua's bewilderment all three commanded the Second Subdivision's First Branch. Unlike the other section leaders, who were accompanied by retinues of reliable subordinates (or, in Misaki's case, her favoured concubines), the Triad brought none of their own men. Misaki pouted and mumbled something about _incompetence_, but Kahlua's intuition warned her that the triplets alone were far more dangerous than all of the men in the Harlot's escort combined.

"Well met, ladies and gentlemen," said Miyabi, after lighting yet another cigarette. "Thank you for taking the time to join us today."

"Anything for you, handsome," replied the Harlot. Her voice was as sweet as honey.

Konagawa nodded politely. "Your summons held higher priority than any of my other duties."

"We serve," chorused the Triad.

Skoru slammed a gloved fist against his ornate breastplate, but the Wraith gave no acknowledgement. Miyabi did not seem to care.

"I'm sure Gyokuro's lapdog told you why I summoned you, but I will explain the situation properly before we begin," he said. "As we speak, eight human soldiers and two kids from Youkai Academy are picking themselves up after their little tumble into Naraka - courtesy of Konagawa's troops - and will likely find somewhere to hide and lick their wounds before trying to find a way out of the shanty town. Gyokuro would have us hunt them down and butcher them without mercy, in order to preserve the secrecy of our glorious organisation."

"You have something else in mind, I take it?" asked Misaki.

Miyabi nodded. "I don't care much for the secrecy of our _glorious organisation_, but one of the students in question is of great value to me, and whatever else happens today, he _must_ survive. If he dies, the person responsible for his death will not be the only one to feel my wrath."

The section leaders tensed. Even Kahlua had heard the rumour of the fate that befell the Fourth Subdivision's Second Branch, after its leader attempted to earn Shuzen Gyokuro's respect by infiltrating Miyabi's headquarters and uncovering the truth of his clandestine operations. The mole did not live long enough to share the information he gathered, but as a precaution Miyabi "visited" the Second Branch's compound. Following the incident, the Second Branch was removed from the Fourth Subdivision's roster, and despite the mystery surrounding the branch's disappearance, no one dared to investigate.

Fujisaki Miyabi did not make hollow threats. Kaneshiro Hokuto had privately warned Kahlua of that fact shortly after Miyabi hired her. If you failed him, then your survival depended entirely on how useful Miyabi considered you to be.

"Like the soldiers who so desperately dragged him into this game, Aono Tsukune is a pawn," Miyabi continued. "But unlike his new-found allies, he has the potential to become something far greater. He simply has to reach the other side of the board, and he will acquire the power necessary to win the game."

_For whom_, Kahlua wondered?

"And this is where we come in?" asked Misaki.

"Yes. Currently, Aono is unaware of his full potential, and he has no motive to move forward. From what I've learned of him, the kid regards power as something to be used defensively, for the benefit of the people who are precious to him. I mean to change that. I want him to realise the truth behind the old adage _the best defense is a good offense._"

"Who dares wins," mused Konagawa.

"Exactly. I want to drive him forward and force him to evolve."

"Why?" asked the Harlot.

Miyabi smiled. "In time, it will become clear to all. Until then, obey me without hesitation, and follow me without doubt. Contrary to what some say, I am not heartless. I value loyal and dependable associates, and I can assure you that your efforts today will be remembered."

The section leaders were enthralled by Miyabi's charisma, but Kahlua saw the cold gleam in his dark eyes and looked away. She had come to learn that Fujisaki Miyabi had little interest in things that were of no use to him, and that there were few things in his possession he regarded with anything close to sentiment or fondness. Truth be told, Kahlua felt a little envious of Aono Tsukune - the boy was imperative to Miyabi's plans, the key to the dream Miyabi chased so passionately. In comparison, Kahlua was little more than a convenient tool to be set aside when it was no longer needed. She knew that, in time, Aono would be the same, but it rankled her that she - a pure-blooded vampire - would be considered dispensable compared to the likes of Aono.

Miyabi reached into an open crate and lifted out a small, rectangular object, slender and slightly curved in appearance. A spare magazine for an assault rifle. He pried a bullet out of the clip and held it up for the gathering to see.

"5.56x45mm NATO cartridges," he declared. "Similar to those used by our own troops, but specially modified and _very_ non-standard issue. Our prey is far from unprepared; the tips of these particular rounds have been replaced with silver, a wise precaution that proved to be the bane of many ayashi during the raid on the humans' hideout. I have not conducted a thorough investigation of this warehouse, but I have seen enough to know that the humans are adequately equipped to face anything dwelling in Naraka. Incendiary shells, hollow-point rounds, mercury-tipped cartridges, flash grenades, silver fragmentation grenades, flamethrowers, and even ammunition designed to poison targets with liquid silver, mercury and purified water... the humans studied us and, typical of their hostile nature, immediately designed tools to kill us.******* I suggest that you approach our quarry with caution, and do not engage them recklessly."

"We must not give our prey the opportunity to use these toys against us," said the Harlequin bluntly. Kahlua was taken aback; the tinny voice that came from within the confines of the lean hulk's menacing helmet was that of a woman.

"Easier said than done, Skoru. Take a look at this: a claymore anti-personnel mine, modified to shred its targets in a shower of silver fragments instead of the standard steel placed, this device could catch an unwary trooper off-guard and be the death of him." ********

"Or one of us," said Konagawa slyly.

"Maybe," agreed Miyabi. "But bear in mind that if any of you are careless enough to trigger such a trap, I will leave you behind and at the mercy of the denizens of Naraka."

The section chiefs nodded and murmered their acknowledgement. Miyabi cast the rifle magazine aside and strode past his lieutenants to go outside. The Harlot's lackies, who had been blocking the doorway, hastily moved aside, as if the fear Miyabi instilled in the hearts of lesser men was enough to momentarily overcome the thralls' obsession with their mistress. Kahlua automatically followed in Miyabi's wake, and the section chiefs filed out of the warehouse at their own pace. None lingered. The briefing was not over until Miyabi dismissed them.

The street outside the warehouse was bustling with activity; disguised ayashi moved to and fro as they secured the area and established a temporary base of operations. They all wore the black and gold uniform of Fairy Tale servicemen, and many were armed with weapons procured from the human world. American weapons. The humans were locked in yet another war with one another, but the sheer scale of this latest conflict provided many opportunities for black marketeers to acquire new merchandise. They bribed logistical officers, intercepted shipments of armarments and scavenged equipment from battlefields, all in the knowledge that there was great demand for weapons and military surplus. The brokers employed by the First Subdivision and the Fourth Subdivision's ties to the criminal underworld of Asia ensured that Fairy Tale was abundently supplied with all the useful human toys it required.

Resisting the impulse to gravitate towards the pool of blood left behind by the late Daniel Moore, Kahlua concentrated on following Miyabi as he marched down the street towards Naraka. The soldiers who were not preoccupied with their duties saluted the pair as they passed. Miyabi inclined his head in return, but Kahlua did not deign to respond. She was a vampire, worthy of their respect even without her pedigree as a Shuzen, her reputation as an assassin and her obvious relation to the Commander herself.

Miyabi wandered over to the breach in the fence seperating Ayashakai from the favela clinging to its eastern flank, and walked right over to the perilous precipice. The gentle breeze whipped at Kahlua's gown and tugged at the golden locks of her hair as she joined him, peering over the edge of the cliff into the shanty town below. Fifteen feet beneath them, a wide hole in the roof of the nearest building gaped up at the pair like the maw of a giant monster, framed with shattered stone and fractured beams like teeth. Kahlua's sharp eyesight picked out the distinctive outline of the hijacked school bus through the dust and the gloom, but judging from the frantic commotion in a nearby street, the humans were already on the move.

With Aono Tsukune in tow.

"They are getting away," remarked Kahlua.

Miyabi exhaled a mouthful of smoke and flicked his cigarette away. "Have you ever hunted before, Kahlua?"

"Not in the conventional sense. Father indulged in the sport every now and then, but my sisters and I never went with him."

"I have. I've hunted humans, animals and ayashi alike, but humans are my game of choice. Animals are too stupid to present much of a challenge, and other ayashi are too predictable. Humans, on the other hand, are marvelous creatures and excellent game. If they are aware of your true nature as you pursue them, their terror is almost tangible. But the fun doesn't end there; if you back them into a corner, they resort to _fight_ instead of _flight_. The final moments of a man's life can define his character, and if a human accepts his fate and stands defiant in the face of the overwhelming odds against him, the thrill of killing him is as satisfying as the finest cuisine."

"That does not change the fact that _these_ humans are escaping," said Kahlua.

"They are not escaping," said Fujisaki Miyabi with a smile. "We're savouring the hunt and giving them a head start."

* * *

**Ayashakai  
**

**Far Eastern Realm of Ayashi  
**

**October 10th, 2015**

"_A state of emergency has been declared in Ayashakai following an incident which saw two students from Youkai Academy abducted from the Assembly Hall late this morning. The culprits have been identified as the human terrorists apprehended after the dramatic battle which took place last week in the Southern District, but the authorities have withheld the names of the young hostages. A Custodian spokesman earlier confirmed that the human terrorists have fled into Naraka, where necessary measures are being taken to rescue their captives. The same spokesman stated that, due to rising tensions between the authorities and the residents of the ghetto, the Custodians themselves will _not_ be entering Naraka, and will instead play an auxiliary role in the rescue operation. While officials have refused to go into more detail about the impending S&R operation, reliable sources suggest that the task of saving the children will fall to a private military company in the employ of the Shuzen clan, who claimed custody of the humans following their arrest and held them in private detention until their daring escape this morning.  
_

_This incident has sparked a great deal of interest in the recent activities of the vampire coven, including the unexplained absence of Representitive Shuzen Issa - who has failed to attend the Assembly for six consecutive sessions - and their increasingly frequent dealings with the Miu Family, a major faction in the criminal underworld of China..._"

"I have heard enough," said Akasha Bloodriver, her voice level but firm.

The bus driver nodded and turned off the radio. The leather upholstery of the limousine's seats creaked as Akasha sat back in her seat, clasping her elegant hands on her lap and staring at the floor thoughtfully. At her side, Akashiya Moka idly bit her thumbnail and gazed out of the tinted window, though she was clearly paying no attention to the scenary. Even Kurumu was in a subdued mood, but Mizore suspected that she was still stunned by the revelation that Moka was the daughter of the most infamous Dark Lord.

Moka's reunion with her mother had been a touching scene, albiet one overshadowed by the gravity of Tsukune's predicament. Akasha had greeted her with equal enthusiasm, and refrained from mentioning anything of Tsukune's plight until she had successfully seperated Moka from her classmates. The news was initially met with disbelief and incredulity, which became shock and fear when Mizore confirmed that it was true. The Chairman's casual indifference to the possibility of Tsukune being killed still rankled Mizore, but she chose not to share that particular piece of information with Moka. Primarily because it would serve no purpose other than making Moka panic, but also because Mizore was aware that Kurumu was eavesdropping on the conversation (even without her keen intuition as a stalker, Mizore would have noticed the sweater-clad swell of the succubus' ample bosom bulging out from behind a nearby column). Kurumu's response would only be predictable in the sense that she was bound to rush off to find and rescue Tsukune by herself upon hearing that his life was at risk.

"The Shuzen clan does not employ mercenaries," said Akasha eventually. "This _private military company_ must be Fairy Tale."

"Kahlua-neesan is involved with the group," agreed Moka. "She was with them at the Shrine of the Snow Priestess."

"It is only natural that Kahlua-chan is associated with Fairy Tale. Her mother is its executive officer. Your _other_ sister has been swayed to their cause too, for reasons I can only guess. What worries me most is your father's disappearance. My work has kept me away from the Far East for too long, but I know in my heart that he would never abandon his neutral position and side with the likes of Fairy Tale. I doubt even Gyokuro could have convinced him to do so, yet from what I have learned since returning, it seems as if she has unlimited access to the Shuzens' wealth and power. Only Issa-san can control the vast resources Gyokuro appears to have commandeered for her private enterprise."

"Kahlua-neesan told me that father was on a sabbatical in Prague."

"Kahlua-chan speaks, but her mother's words leave her mouth. Lies and false information. Kahlua-chan does not possess Kokoa-chan's resiliance to Gyokuro's influence, and she is too trusting to realize that her mother's love is purely platonic. The woman is a tyrant whose ambition is second only to her lust for power, and I truly fear for both Issa-san and Kahlua-chan's safety. Gyokuro invested a great deal of time moulding Kahlua-chan into a living weapon, but will not hesitate to sacrifice her, particularly if the gain advances her agenda. You know this, Omote-chan. Fortunately, Moka had little contact with Gyokuro as a child, but her memories of the woman will almost certainly be unhappy ones."

_Omote_. So far, Mizore had not heard Akasha address Moka by her name; she simply called her Omote, a sobriquet which Mizore had only ever heard Inner Moka use in reference to her sealed counterpart. She also spoke as if _Moka_ were a different person and - to Mizore's bewilderment - Moka herself began to refer to herself in third person. It was a peculiar situation, one that confused Mizore greatly. She tried not to dwell on it, concluding that _Omote_ was Akasha's name for Outer Moka, and that _Moka_ referred to Inner Moka.*********

Silence fell again, and Mizore found herself reflecting on her encounter with Shuzen Kahlua at the Shrine of the Snow Priestess. As expected of a vampire - and of Moka's older sister - Kahlua had been a monsterously powerful opponent, one that Mizore never wanted to face again if she could help it. The memory of the vampire's dreadful transformation ability made Mizore shudder. The whole affair had been extremely distressing, and there were times when Mizore found herself drawn back into the state of panic that had almost driven her mad with fear and despair.

As if surrendering to curiosity, or perhaps the desire to converse with her daughter after so many years of absence, Akasha began asking Moka about her life at Youkai Academy. She was clearly pleased to hear that Moka excelled at almost any given subject, and that her contributions to the _Youkai Times_ were praised by staff and pupils alike. As members of the Newspaper Club, Kurumu and Mizore were drawn into this part of the conversation, which eventually led to Akasha addressing the girls directly to learn more about them. Kurumu was unusually shy at first, almost humble, but the warmth of Akasha's personality put her at ease and she became more talkative as the journey went on. Akasha was amused by Kurumu's declaration that Tsukune was her Destined One, and remarked that he must be a very interesting person to have won the hearts of such charming girls.

Mizore was not sure what to make of Akasha Bloodriver. She was familiar with the legendary deeds of the greatest Dark Lord - there were few ayashi in the Far Eastern Realms who did not know Akasha Bloodriver's name - and she had always imagined Moka's mother to be the embodiment of everything vampires were feared for. Not only did it astound Mizore that these two individuals were in fact the same person, but the angelic and elegant woman in question did not match either of those preconceptions. Mizore found it hard to believe that this kind, smiling woman was the same Akasha Bloodriver who had established a legend as an indestructable warrior without peer. The same Akasha Bloodriver who led the raid that saw all of the mysterious Disciples of Alucard put to the sword, who ended Vorleina Dracul's cruel reign and bloody conquest of the European ayashi domains by slaying the tyrant in single combat, who returned as the sole survivor of the doomed expedition into the nightmare corpse-city R'lyeh, and who had accomplished countless other feats of incredible fortitude and awe-inspiring skill.

Akasha's name bore over two centuries' worth of history, yet she did not look a day over thirty-five, and if the trials of her past weighed on her heart and soul, she hid it well.

"We have arrived," announced the driver, smoothly bringing the vehicle to a halt before a formidable gate of dark iron.

"Naraka?" enquired Akasha with a raised eyebrow.

"As the Chairman instructed," replied the bus driver, turning off the limousine's engine and settling back in his seat. "The boy is in there, somewhere. As is my bus. We will have to proceed on foot from here; even if Naraka was accessable to vehicles, we would not venture far before this car attracted... unwanted attention."

"As you say."

Akasha was the first to climb out of the limousine, with Moka close behind her. As they made their own way out of the car, Mizore tugged the elbow of Kurumu's shirt to get her attention.

"What's Naraka?" she asked.

"A bad place. My mom would tell me scary stories about it when I was little, and said that the creatures who lived there ate children and played with their bones," replied Kurumu. "When I misbehaved, mom told me that the things in Naraka would come and take me away to live with them. I know it was all just stories, but this place really does have a bad reputation in the capital. Some say it's haunted, others say it's a war zone where gangs of bloodthirsty ayashi kill each other for fun. If any of them have touched Tsukune, I'll charm them all and lead them off a cliff!"

Mizore nodded, and surveyed her surroundings as she stepped out of the limousine. The vehicle had stopped in a large open space in front of the iron gate, flanked by a watchtower on one side and a prefabricated gatekeeper's lodge on the other. Urgent signs warned their readers to present valid identification and credentials to the gatekeepers immediately upon arrival. A trio of men clad in uniforms similar to those worn by the Custodians came out of the gatehouse, regarding the newcomers with analytical gazes. Mizore felt eyes on her back, and glanced around to find another guard watching over them from the tower. As they drew closer, the guards gaped as they realised who stood before them, and one even dropped into one knee and bowed his head.

"Lady Bloodriver, I had never thought to see you here," said one of the guards, the senior of the three if the decorative pins on his uniform were anything to go by.

"And I had not thought to be here, but yet I am," replied Akasha. She gestured to the gate. "I must enter Naraka as soon as possible. Could you please open the gate?"

The senior guard seemed to regain his composure. "I can, but you will have to submit a formal request to the office and state your reason for entering the slum."

"Urgent business, Dark Lord stuff. Is that reason enough?"

"Y-yes," said the guard, unnerved by Akasha's brusque manner. "I'm sure we can grant you access on those grounds. Jukko-san, fetch the paperwork and bring out - "

"I don't have time for this," said Akasha firmly. Her tone was not aggressive, but the guards tensed and recoiled as if expecting her to lash out. "Open the gate. Now."

"Go, Jukko-san. Go and open the gate."

The kneeling guard rose with an enthusiastic salute and hurried off into the gatehouse. After several moments, the heavy iron slab split in half and slowly slid open with a deep mechanical whir, revealing yet another gate beyond it.

"My thanks," said Akasha sweetly. "Come, girls. Let's not keep Aono-kun waiting any longer than necessary."

Mizore followed Akasha into the space between the two gates with Moka and Kurumu at her sides. As she turned to watch the first gate grind shut behind them, Mizore was surprised to find the bus driver standing at the rear of their party, admiring the craftsmanship of his latest cigar. It took a few moments for the second gate to begin opening, and Akasha strode through the widening gap and onto a broad landing overlooking the district called Naraka. The valley was several miles wide and nearly eighty feet deep, tightly packed with old buildings and threaded with intersecting streets and alleys. The bus driver was right; there was no way to get a vehicle down there. To Mizore's right, a broad staircase of steel steps led down to the floor of the valley.

"I'll look for Tsukune!" declared Kurumu. Her wings, black and leathery, erupted from beneath her uniform and unfolded behind her in preparation for flight. She stepped forward and propelled herself into the air, but yelped as Akasha arrested her launch by reaching out and grabbing the thin black tail protruding from beneath her plaid skirt.

"We stay together, Kurono-chan," said Akasha. "The denizens of Naraka are notorious for their predatory nature, and you can be certain that you are not the only winged ayashi in this place. Do not take to the skies unless it is absolutely necessary."

"Will we have to fight our way to where Tsukune is?" asked Moka.

"You won't be able to fight like that," said Mizore quietly. "Not while you are wearing the rosary."

"Conflict will not be necessary," said Akasha breezily, rubbing her hands together in anticipation.

Before she could ask how Akasha intended to navigate the slum without clashing with its supposedly savage inhabitants, an unnatural chill ran down Mizore's spine as she was enveloped in an aura so immense that it made her own youki seem as minute as a lone candle in an empty cathedral.

* * *

**Naraka, Ayashakai  
**

**October 10th, 2015  
**

Despite the intensity of his training sessions with Inner Moka, the results were undoubtedly beneficial; even laden with the heavy bergen Alexander had saddled him with, Tsukune easily kept pace with his taller companions. They made their way east - moving deeper into Naraka - weaving through narrow streets and gloomy alleys as they put more distance between their rearguard and their pursuers. As he ran, Tsukune took note of his surroundings; the buildings were tall, boxy structures made of stone, old and derelict, and each facade was a hideous exhibit of clumsy, inexpert repairs and casual vandalism. Refuse and debris carpeted the streets, and judging from the odious stains on the sidewalks, chamber pots were a common sanitary feature, and emptied out of windows with little care for where their contents landed.

"Y'know, I wasted twenty-three years of my life in a ghetto in Detroit," Hayden mused aloud as he ran. "It was like Miami Beach compared to this fuckin' shithole."

Tsukune had to take the soldier's word for that, but Naraka was certainly the most run-down area he had ever visited. Ramshackle buildings and crude extensions to existing structures had been constructed wherever there was space for them, and more than once the group were forced to double back when they found their path blocked by rickety edifices of corrogated metal and wooden planks, assembled in the middle of streets or at the end of alleyways.

The chaotic layout of the buildings and their appalling condition did not trouble Tsukune as much as the creatures who dwelt within them. Unlike the ayashi who lived in the more affluent quarters of Ayashakai, the denizens of Naraka went about their daily business in their natural forms, making the slum seem more like a menagerie than a ghetto. The vast majority of them were monstrels, hybrid creatures of questionable origin and uncertain species, but from time to time Tsukune caught a glimpse of a monster whose ancestry was easier to identify.

But even these "ordinary" ayashi looked at the intruders with hungry eyes.

Within thirty minutes of abandoning the bus, the group engaged in four skirmishes with predatory ayashi intent on robbing or eating (or both) the humans in their midst. The soldiers closed ranks, with Hayden, Alexander, Baranov and Nanahara forming a very loose ring around the wounded and their attendants, and repelled their attackers with their augmented weapons. The tight confines of the narrow streets and close alleys worked to the soldiers' advantage; the superior numbers of the predatory ayashi funnelled them into bottlenecks and prevented them from maneuvering freely, and with a limited amount of space to move in the ayashi were unable to evade the precise volleys of gunfire laid down by the soldiers. Grenades and explosives devastated large groups, and the bodies of the maimed and dead alike created obstacles for the living, impeding their movements further and slowing their rabid advance. The civilian girl called Reese was relieved of the rifle-like flame thrower she had been carrying on her back, and with it Nanahara cremated ravenous mobs and hulking brutes alike, hosing them with jets of bright orange flame. The appetites and bloodthirsty urges of many ayashi were forgotten as the fire engulfed them, and the courage of others failed as they witnessed the dreadful fate of their flame-wreathed kin. Blazing pyres and smouldering corpses of burning ayashi marked the sites of battle between man and monster like eerie memorials.

With their weapons, explosives and effective use of urban combat doctrines, the humans held the upper hand in ranged combat, but their second clash with the natives of Naraka proved that the ayashi were physically superior. A monstrel vaguely resembling a bipedal hyena with boney spikes protruding randomly from its bald flesh was the first to appear, dropping down from the rooftops to land in the middle of the group and effectively dividing it as other feral beasts closed in. Had Tsukune not sensed the hyena-thing's hostile youki and warned his companions, Cross and Yukari would have been crushed under its weight as it crashed onto the spot they had occupied mere heartbeats after Cross leapt aside.

With a roar as ferocious as the hyena-thing's savage cry, Gregori Baranov leapt forward tackled the ayashi, slamming his muscle-bound bulk into its inhuman form and knocking it against the wall of the nearest building. It recovered swiftly and retaliated by shoving Baranov roughly and pinning him against the opposite wall. The giant gasped as the air was driven from his lungs by the impact. It took two brawny hands and all of his strength to keep his opponent's snapping maw from biting his face off, and only his armoured vest protected him from the hyena-thing's scything claws, which dug deep into his kevlar vest and scraped frantically against it to shred the meaty torso beneath. The human bellowed venomous obscenities back at the monstrel as it howled in his face and sprayed him with spittle.

_Focus. Fill up with youki and control it. Focus. _

_Release._

The hyena-like monstrel screeched in agony as Tsukune delivered a punishing blow to its ribs and sent it sprawling, and before it could scramble back onto its feet he ran at it and slammed his fist into its face. He did not check to see if he had killed it, but the monstrel certainly did not move for the remainder of the fight. As another rabid creature leapt at him, Tsukune lashed out with his fist again and struck it in the abdomen in mid-flight, knocking it into a wall with such force that it took a few moments for gravity to peel the creature's limp form from the indentation in the stonework.

More came at him. The numbers and hostility of the Narakans would once have paralysed Tsukune with fear, or driven him to flee in terror, but his trials in the Chairman's Paradise and the intense training regime he had endured under the tutelage of Inner Moka had hardened him and nurtured his latent vampiric abilities, and now the process of charging his fist with youki and unleashing it in a devastating punch was almost second nature to Tsukune. There was still a slight lag in his technique - Moka had noted a delay of three seconds between each strike - but the power of his attacks was enough to contend with the natives of Naraka and provide his human allies with much-needed support in close combat.

Another monstrel of vaguely canine origin - possibly the kin of the beast Tsukune had saved Baranov from - came at him, and Tsukune swung his fist up in a savage upper-cut so powerful the thing flipped in the air and landed motionless on its front several metres away. Tsukune sagged. He had not intended to channel so much youki into that attack. Momentarily worn out, he turned on the spot and surveyed the battle raging around him. Half a dozen ayashi panicked and flailed around in agony as their twisted forms were wreathed in flames, and Hayden wooped triumphantly as he downed a small pterodactyl-like monstrel with a lucky headshot. With Yukari still out cold over one shoulder, Cross snapped off shots with the pistol he held in one hand, while Doctor Vokes did the same with Jackson slumped against her.

"Are you alright, Aruno-san?"

Tsukune looked around. It was the translator girl, Reese, unarmed and wide-eyed as she took advantage of a lull in the fighting to approach him.

"_Aono_," he corrected her, slightly breathless after the intense melee. "Aono Tsukune."

"I'm sorry, Aono-san. The others called you Aruno, so I - "

"Behind you!"

Tsukune leapt forward. In one motion he pushed the bewildered civilian aside with his left hand and drove his right fist into the gut of the stunned ayashi that had risen to its feet behind the unsuspecting human. The brute doubled over and tumbled backwards to join the other casualties carpeting the street, and Tsukune exhaled wearily. Reese said something, but Tsukune did not hear; his heart thumped frantically inside his chest, the world darkened and restricted his vision to a narrow tunnel directly ahead of him. He fell, but did not feel the impact of his knees hitting the hard earth. Gripped in the throes of over-exertion, Tsukune's hands balled into tight fists and every muscle in his body tensed.

_The heady scent of fresh blood. Enemies, ripe for slaughter. He yearned to kill, to maim and feel the warmth of blood on his lips. Something inside him raged, restricted and unable to indulge in the pleasure of murder and mindless violence.__  
_

_Amid the chaos burning within him, a memory rose to the surface of his thoughts, as if to warn or reprimand him.  
_

_"Because it was not made for you, a defect cannot be avoided... when your ayashi aura becomes too strong, that lock will not be able to hold... and the seal will be broken."  
_

_The lock. The Holy Lock, bound around his right wrist to seal away the berserker lurking in the darkest recess of his mind. Even with his wits dulled by the excruciating effects of over-exertion of youki, Tsukune could feel the weight of the Holy Lock around his wrist. Its links - usually cool to the touch - felt white-hot against his skin, as if the intense pressure of his youki was superheating the metal. With what little willpower he retained in his feverish state, Tsukune forced himself to focus on the Holy Lock, anchoring his sanity to its presence and placing his faith in the endurance of its sealing mechanism. _

_It is your lifeline, all that represses your inner ghoul and impedes its domination of your body...  
_

By the time Tsukune regained his senses, the skirmish was over. Hayden and Baranov were carrying him between them as they hurried on through Naraka's run-down streets, but Tsukune insisted he could walk and hobbled after them when they released him. Still nauseous from the sensation he recognised as borderline ghoulification, and appalled by the thoughts his latent vampiric instincts had inspired, Tsukune focused entirely on keeping up with his provisional companions.

Yukari awoke shortly before the third clash with the natives, but Cross continued to carry her when it became clear that her short legs lacked the ability to keep up with the rapid pace of the considerably taller humans. Despite this, she made her presence felt in the third battle - reunited with her wand, Yukari manipulated the set of iron tarot cards she secreted in a pocket within her coat, and with decisive flicks of her wand the cards darted from their protective orbit around her tiny body to slash and imbed themselves in the flesh of incoming enemies. Though none of the ambushers died by Yukari's hand, the damage the razor-sharp edges of her cards inflicted on their tendons and joints prevented them from pursuing the group further.

The man called Jackson took a turn for the worse after the fourth skirmish. Doctor Vokes reported that his pulse was weak, and that only God's grace would allow him to live for more than another hour if his stricken body was denied rest and rudimentary treatment.

The tenement block Alexander selected to go to ground in was, like the buildings around it, so unkept and poorly maintained it was more like a ruin than a habitable structure. A wide courtyard carpeted with refuse and broken masonry seperated it from the buildings around it, and its main entrance was a gaping breach in one wall on the ground floor, as if some giant creature had tried to force its way through the door and instead knocked down part of the wall. Through this gap, the group entered an unlit stairwell and carefully made their way up several flights of hazardous stairs by the white beams of the flashlights the humans mounted on their weapons. Most of the wooden steps were rotting. Some were broken, others missing entirely. The corroding banisters were veiled with old cobwebs, long abandoned by the spiders who had spun them. The sight depressed Tsukune. Not even spiders could tolerate this hovel.

Other creatures did, however. Nanahara was at the fore of the group, and something feral and hungry ambushed him on the landing of the second floor. Two well-placed blasts from one of Cross' pistols ended the lurker's life, but not before it ripped off part of Nanahara's left ear and torn an ugly gash on his jaw.

The group reached the third floor and located an empty apartment large enough to accommodate them. It was cold, and stank of damp, mold and a fouler odor Tsukune was reluctant to find the source of, but it was safe, and even the creaking floorboards were as comfortable as a plush cushion after what seemed like hours of constant running and fighting. Baranov was charged with securing the perimeter while Doctor Vokes laid Jackson down on the bedroll she had brought from the wreakage of the bus. As she began to conduct her examination of the patient, Yukari knelt down beside the wounded soldier and carefully assessed his condition herself.

"I can help," she stated, and held her wand over Jackson's recumbent form.

Vokes looked sceptical. "Are you trained?"

"I'm a genius," replied Sendo Yukari.

As the medic and the witch fussed over Jackson, the others shed the kitbags and gear weighing them down and made themselves comfortable in the dismal apartment. Though dusty and unkept, the apartment was spacious; one of the internal walls had been clumsily knocked down, merging the living area with the adjoining room, and grey daylight shone in through a large set of grimy windows in each section. There was no furniture, the kitchen was barren and the plumbing had ceased functioning long ago, but no one complained. It would suffice until they were ready to move on.

Nanahara sat cross-legged on the floor and allowed Alexander to tend to his maimed ear with a wad of cotton and a bottle of clear liquid Baranov had been carrying. The captain took a swig of the stuff before soaking the cotton and offering the bottle to Nanahara while he dabbed the man's wound. Reese curled up in a ball in the corner, tired and despondant. Cross sat down beside Tsukune, leaning back against the wall and sighing wearily.

"Anyone got a fag?" he asked.

"Say what?" asked Hayden sharply, rounding on the British soldier.

"A fag," repeated Cross. He frowned and mimed the action of smoking. "A cigarette. A smoke. Whatever you bloody yanks call them."

Hayden produced a packet of cigarettes and a cheap lighter from a pouch on his webbing, and tossed them at Cross in a surly manner.

"That word means something else where I'm from, limey. Don't throw it around like that."

Hayden returned his concentration to the task of stripping down his weapon and cleaning it. Cross made a rude hand gesture to Hayden's back and jammed a fresh cigarette between his cracked lips.

"You see that? He'll take any excuse to have a go at me," he confided to Tsukune. "Bloody tosser."

Tsukune refused the cigarette Cross offered him and asked, "Why do you two fight so much?"

"'Cause I'm the second most dangerous bastard in Her Majesty's armed forces, and the yank is just a jarhead from _the hood_. Even then, he failed at being a jarhead. When the UN Security Council chose Alexander to lead the military half of this outfit, they gave him and General Abrams the pick of the litter. MacMillian and I were in Alexander's squad in the SAS, so naturally we were among the first chosen. Mac's dead now, poor bastard."

"What about Hayden-san?" asked Tsukune. "Did Captain Alexander choose him too?"

"Yeah. Fuck knows why. Me, the lieutenant, the Bear... even Doc Vokes there, we all had good reputations and came highly recommended. The yank is just a grunt, and he's got a piss-poor service record to boot. He was doing time in Fort Leavenworth in Kansas when Alexander found him. They locked him up after some colonel made fun of him and ended up in hospital. Alexander seemed to think that was the sort of person a team like ours needed."

Tsukune looked over at Nanahara, who winced as Alexander taped gauze over his vodka-slick wounds.

"You said earlier that you work for the United Nations, but you would not say why you were here," said Tsukune firmly. "We are not in danger, so tell me now. Why are you people here in the monster world?"

An awkward silence fell on the group. In it, Tsukune could hear the distant creaks and thumps of Baranov's heavy tread, the low thrumming of Yukari's wand and Jackson's laboured breathing, but he kept his gaze on Nanahara, willing the man to answer. Nanahara took another swig of vodka before speaking.

"We are what is left of the United Nations Studies and Observation Group," he said. "A task force assembled to conduct reconnaissance and gather intelligence on the inhabitants of the Far Eastern Realm of Ayashi. Eight months ago, an old ally of the British Crown contacted an office within the British Secret Intelligence Service to warn them of the possibility of an imminent campaign of mass destruction, orchestrated by a certain individual here in the Asian ayashi domain. _Nosferatu_ - as the informant calls himself - was apparently preoccupied and unable to investigate the matter himself, so he provided the British SIS with a means of entering this place and requested that they gather evidence on his behalf."

"The only active monster specialists left in the world are the members of the _Vetus Fraternitatis_, but those archaic zealots can't be trusted to be subtle while there are _demons_ to be vanquished, so the top brass took this to the UN Security Council," said Alexander. "It formed the UNSOG to investigate _Nosferatu_'s claim and exploit this rare opportunity to collect data on this world. The observers made notes on the society and biology of monsters while looking for proof that there was an anti-human organisation active in the Far East. _Nosferatu_ mentioned that certain members of the Shuzen family were likely to be involved, so Avery started digging for intel on their recent activities. Two weeks ago, he hit the jackpot - he found solid evidence that the Shuzens were investing an enormous amount of capital in a joint venture with a crime syndicate based in Hong Kong, which further investigation revealed was the formation of an army of genocidal monsters bent on the annihilation of mankind."

"Fairy Tale," said Yukari.

All of the humans looked at her sharply.

"You know about them?" asked Hayden.

"Tsukune-san and I have faced them before," said Yukari. "They tried to take our friend away from us, and they tried to force Sun-senpai to join them."

Tsukune nodded. "We stopped them both times. They are strong, but we won."

Alexander scratched his chin. "_Strong_ is a bit of an understatement. Fairy Tale is a vast organisation - it has a bottomless pot of money and enough manpower to occupy an entire city, not to mention the fact its members are bona fide freaks. They have everything from vampires to stuff like Miura Kentarou's visions of horror. We were forced to re-consider our approach when we discovered this. Twenty soldiers against _that_? A kid would have more luck crushing a mountain. And then the shit really hit the fan when the authorities became aware of our presence in the city. They raided our headquarters, and while we were fending them off Fairy Tale sent freaks to silence us and burn the intel we had gathered. In the end, only a handful of us survived, and the Custodians and the Shuzens locked horns over who got to torture us. The Shuzens won, we escaped from their clutches and... well, you know the rest."

It was all making sense now. Tsukune began comparing the information reported by the ayashi media to the testamony of the humans, and saw the twisted facts for what they were. Moka's older sister - Kahlua - was affiliated with Fairy Tale. She must have had something to do with the Shuzen clan claiming custody of the humans.

"So what now?" he asked. "What do you plan to do now?"

"Escape to the human world, warn our superiors what's coming and start digging trenches," said Hayden grimly.

Cross nodded. "And kick _Nosferatu_ up the arse for giving us fuck all in the way of intelligence. The sneaky git sent us here with no leads except a hunch that the Shuzens were up to no good. We proved him right, but it was bloody hard work and good men died doing it. As soon as I meet this _Nosferatu_ bloke, I'm giving him a hundred lashes for every mate we lost. It's the least we can do for Mac and Harrison and all the other lads and girls who aren't going home."

Baranov returned and reported that he had set up an array of claymores and other dangerous devices in the hallway outside the apartment to fend off any unexpected visitors, and sat down beside Cross as Alexander produced ration packs from the bergen Tsukune had hauled through Naraka. They lacked the means to prepare cooked food, but there were enough biscuits and blocks of cheese to provide the group with a light snack. Everyone seemed to have their own flask of water, and Baranov opened another bottle of vodka to compliment the meagre meal. Judging from the _clink_ his bergen made when it moved, Tsukune did not doubt that there was plenty more of the stuff to come.

Yukari politely declined the food offered to her as she focused entirely on Jackson. A pale nimbus of light surrounded the star-shaped device on the end of her wand, and the soldier winced and grunted as he bathed in its glow. His body twitched frequently, and occassional spasms were accompanied by gasps of pain and a faint crackling sound from within his body.

"What are you doing to him?" asked Vokes, curious but wary.

"Repairing the damage to his skeleton," replied Yukari, not taking her eyes off her charge. "His left shoulder blade was fractured, a fibrous ring around one of his intervertebral discs was torn and three of his ribs were broken. I can also accelerate the healing of his flesh wounds, but I will need your help cleaning them first to prevent infection."

"Jesus... you can do all that just by holding a stick over him?"

"Yukari-chan really is a genius," said Tsukune with a smile.

Yukari's cheeks turned pink as the acknowledgement pleased her. "This is nothing, really. I once watched my mother restore an entire arm destroyed in an accident. This is just a basic form of regenerative youki conversion that all witches are required to study as children."

"Heal the lieutenant's injuries next," said Alexander.

"My wounds can wait. It would be unwise to put unnecessary pressure on Sendo-san before we escape Naraka," said Nanahara. "Her skill will almost certainly be required when we set out again."

"Where will we go?" asked Tsukune. "Is there a way out of Naraka?"

"Yes. We can either make our way to the North Gate or the South Gate, but both will be heavily guarded," said Yukari. She looked up to find everyone staring at her as if expecting her to continue. "Naraka was once a river. The Sanzu River, which flowed into the city through a portal in the north and out through another in the south. The Sanzu once connected all of the ayashi settlements in Asia and many of the settlements in Africa, Europe and the Middle East, flowing through all of them before returning here and beginning the cycle all over again. This was back in the days when Space Transfer Techniques were a secret branch of dark arts monopolized by the Gatekeeper Guild. The Dark Lords changed that, of course, but the Sanzu ferries were still a popular way to travel around until the Fall of Diablus."

Tsukune was familiar with the event; Moka had written an essay about it in school, and the enthusiastic reception her work recieved from the class led to the Newspaper Club publishing it in the _Youkai Times_ as an elegy titled _The Lament of Diablus_. At its zenith, Diablus was a prosperous ayashi city in Europe, renown for its silk and wine. In the late eighteenth century, an army of pious human witch hunters and noble knights gathered under the banner of a group called the White Fraternity, which instigated a crusade to cleanse God's earth of the monsters despoiling it. How the Fraternity found a portal to Diablus, no one knew - some said the inquisition wrung the secret from a captive ayashi, others claimed that a succubus fell in love with a crusader and showed him the way as a gesture of her devotion to him, only to be murdered by the man and trampled underfoot as he led his brethren into the city.

In either case, the host of zealous humans stormed Diablus and put its inhabitants to the sword, overwhelming the defenders with the fervor and determination instilled within their hearts by their fanatical devotion to their cause. As the city burned, its masters came to a grim conclusion: if Diablus was occupied by the humans, they could use it as a staging ground to launch similar purges on other ayashi settlements. Unwilling to let this happen, the masters of Diablus sealed the city and forced the pocket dimension to collapse in on itself, halting the genocidal crusade of the humans at the cost of their own lives, and those of the city's surviving defenders.

"The Sanzu ran through Diablus?" asked Tsukune

Yukari nodded. "When the city was destroyed, it left a gap in time and space, and the Sanzu emptied itself into this dimensional void before its current could be halted or re-directed. The river ran dry, and no attempt was made to fill it again. Instead, the Assembly tried to expand Ayashakai by building a European-style residential district here, but during the economical depression thirty years ago it became neglected, and it gradually became a haven for the montrels shunned and expelled by mainstream society."

"Less history, more actionable intel," rumbled Baranov.

"There are two ways to leave Naraka - the North Gate or the South Gate. The gates were built on the sites of the old Sanzu Docks; goods and passengers coming into Ayashakai were unloaded at the north docks, and exports and people leaving the city boarded at the south docks. The gates are fortified and guarded, but the Custodians at the checkpoints don't have guns and will be easier to fight than the montrels we will undoubtedly face on our way there."

"I'm not worried about the cops. It's the gate itself that concerns me," said Alexander, scratching the stubble on his chin. "Does anyone have spare explosives?"

Hayden patted his rucksack. "Right here, boss. I've got enough C4 here to send the Eiffel Tower to the moon."

"Good to know. Aono said that the portal leading back to his school is in the Southern District of Ayashakai, so we'll head for the South Gate. We'll blow through the gate, find some wheels and drive to the school. From there, we'll go back to the human world and leg it to the nearest Japanese Self Defence Army base."

"Leave us at Youkai Academy," said Tsukune. "Yukari-chan and I will warn the Board Chairman about Fairy Tale. He is a very powerful man, and will know a way to stop them from starting a war."

"Let's hope so," said Alexander.

Silence fell again as the humans checked their weapons and evenly distributed their ammunition and supplies. With Vokes' help, Yukari cleaned Jackson's wounds and exposed them to the restorative halo surrounding her wand. Nanahara made adjustments to the flamethrower and tested its pilot light, but to Tsukune's relief he did not pull the weapon's trigger. Reese was asleep in the corner, still hugging her knees to her chest. Baranov idly toyed with the tomahawk-style axe he had been carrying on his belt, twirling it and weighing it as if comparing it with a weapon he was more familiar with. Cross treated himself to several more cigarettes, and Alexander followed Hayden's productive example and disassembled his M4 carbine for maintainance.

Yukari was the first to sense the arrival of the enemy.

Having done all she could for Jackson, Yukari was helping Vokes to wrap gauze around the soldier's freshly-healed wounds when she looked up abruptly, her eyes wide. She rose and trotted across to the window, and wiped away dust and grime from one of the panes to peer outside. Before Tsukune could ask what was wrong, he felt it too; the youki of more than a score of hostile ayashi, overshadowed by a considerably more powerful aura. He scrambled over to the window and cleared a pane for himself using the sleeve of his shirt, and found himself looking down upon a large number of armed men dressed in black uniforms identical to those worn by the men who had attacked them at the warehouse.

"Oh, fuckberries with a side of bollocks!" yelped Cross as he joined them at the window. "Alexander, we've got bad guys on our doorstep!"

The others hurried over to the windows. Cross and Baranov loomed over Tsukune and Yukari as they surveyed the enemies assembled in the courtyard in front of the tenement, while Alexander and Hayden stomped over the remains of the internal wall to peer out of the window in the other room.

Hayden spat. "These fuckin' Fairy Tale assholes don't know when to give up, do they?"

"Never mind that, their discipline is appalling. Who trained these idiots?" wondered Alexander. "They're just standing out in the open. If we had been expecting them, half of the fools would be dead by now."

Baranov pointed. "Look at the box," he grunted.

On the far side of the courtyard, at the rear of the platoon of black-clad men, two muscular orcs carried a luxurious norimono********** between them. Its wooden chasis was painted a luscious scarlet, and the decorations were highlighted with gleaming gold. The orcs turned to present the side of the norimono to the onlookers, and its door slid open to reveal a curvaceous woman lounging on the pillows within. From the amount of alabaster-smooth skin her loose kimono exposed, Tsukune got the impression that she was not wearing anything beneath the garment. It was barely able to conceal her chest, endowed with breasts larger than any Tsukune had seen before, with the exception of Kurono Ageha's.

"Bloody hell, look at size of the tits on this bird!" chuckled Cross.

"Keep it in your pants, limey," said Hayden.

"Her breasts are bigger than Natalya's," remarked Baranov.

"Who's that? Your wife?"

"No, my brother's wife. Good breasts, nice and jiggly, but she is like a broomstick compared to this woman."

Unable to think of an adequate response, Tsukune returned his attention to the woman in the norimono. One of the men in uniform knelt beside the litter and handed the woman a conical object made of brass, which she raised to her mouth and aimed at the tenement block. Her voice, pleasently sweet and carrying sensual undertones, was projected across the courtyard, conveying her words clearly as if she were standing on the other side of the glass.

"Aono Tsukune, you don't have to run anymore. I am here for you. Come to me and I will take you away from this awful place. You must be so tense and weary after enduring so much and coming all this way... why don't you come down and let me work my magic on that body of yours? Don't be shy. I won't bite... not aggressively, anyway..."

"She's just like Kurumu-san!" pouted Yukari. "All boobs and no sense! Does she expect Tsukune-san to give up so easily?"

"With a body like that on offer, I would," admitted Alexander.

Tsukune shook his head. "I will never surrender to Fairy Tale."

Outside, the woman grew impatient by the lack of an obvious response.

"I'm going to count to ten!" she snapped. "If you do not surrender yourself to me by then, my pets will come inside and drag you out! One! Two! Three! Four! Five! Six! Seven! Eight! Nine! Nine and a half! Nine and three quarters... _t__en_! Alright, if you want to play hard-to-get, that's fine by me. I never turn down foreplay. Open fire!"

Time seemed to slow as the extraordinary part of Tsukune's psyche registered the threat of violence and heightened his awareness. The woman's subordinates raised their weapons, bringing the dark barrels of their weapons up to aim them at the window he and Yukari crouched behind. The clatter of the rifles being primed rang out across the courtyard. Acting on the impulse fed to his consciousness by his inner combatant, Tsukune wrapped his arms around Yukari's tiny body and pulled her away from the window, knocking Baranov and Cross off their feet as he dived into the middle of the room.

"_Get down_!" he shouted, throwing himself onto the floor and using his body to shield Yukari as the room exploded in a storm of shattered glass, pulverized plaster, billowing dust and a deadly hail of lead.

* * *

Cal's Annotations

***** - Alexander's character was inspired by Private Cooper from the British cult horror film _Dog Soldiers_, and "Soap" MacTavish from the _Call of Duty: Modern Warfare_ games, both of whom were portrayed/voiced by Scottish actor Kevin McKidd. If you like this story, go watch _Dog Soldiers_. It's also based on the idea of man vs. monster (soldiers vs. werewolves, to be specific), but set on a remote farm in the Scottish Highlands.

****** - Originally, Amy was meant to say "It's like a cast gathering from _The Nightmare Before Christmas_!" at this point, but frankly the Eclipse sequence from _Berserk_ is far freakier than anything Tim Burton can throw at us. I recently re-read this manga from the beginning, which took up a lot of free time I should have spent writing, but Celt eventually brought me back on track. To use another _Berserk_ analogy, she kept me focused on writing like Schierke retaining Guts' sanity when fighting in his berserker armour.

******* - In our version of the Rosario+Vampire universe, ayashi are vulnerable to silver. However, physical contact alone has no effect - it must penetrate their flesh and come into contact with their blood before its purifying properties can do any harm. A wound sustained from a weapon or bullet made of silver will heal extremely slowly, as silver contamination of the blood disrupts the ayashi's natural flow of youki and retards their regenerative abilities. Significant contamination weakens them and can kill them if the silver is not expelled from their bodies. Severe damage to the brain or the heart is typically fatal. This is** not** canon material, though headshots in general are implied to be fatal for ayashi in the manga.

******** - The M18 Claymore mine is an instrument best suited for use against infantry and unarmoured targets. It looks like a curved rectangular box with prongs on the bottom, and most models have "Front Toward Enemy" helpfully embossed/stencilled on the front, to inform the squad dumbass he is setting it up wrong when the words are facing him. When detonated, a charge of C4 plastic explosive goes off inside the claymore and its targets are showered in a hail of tiny steel balls (which tend to fragment for maximum lethality) propelled at high speed by the ensuing explosion. The perimeters of many embassies are equipped with non-lethal varients of the claymore - which fire rubber balls instead of steel balls - to fend off antagonists during riots/violent protests.

********* - Yeah, this confuses me too. Celt wrote this bit, and even though I understand what she's trying to say, I struggled to convey it properly when I incorporated it into the story. Basically, Akasha is aware that Outer Moka (nicknamed "Omote" in the manga) is not her true daughter, while Inner Moka (nicknamed "Ura") is the original Moka she birthed and raised. She distingushes the two aspects of her daughter by naming them thus. The reason for Omote's creation despite Akasha still being alive will be explained in a later chapter, along with the reason for Moka being sent to live with one of Mikogami's acquaintances in the human world.

********** - A norimono was the Japanese equivelant of a litter/palanquin typically reserved for samurai and the nobility of Japan. The Harlot was originally supposed to be riding a horse, but this particular method of transport suits her character better.

* * *

**Celt:** And there we have it! I cannot believe this chapter was thirteen thousand words long. Plus all the other bits Cal added to the other chapters. Was it worth the wait?

This chapter's title may be confusing for some people - it is part of the old saying "out of the frying pan and into the fire", which basically refers to a situation when you escape one danger only to find yourself facing another. I thought it was appropriate for this chapter.

I did not do much this chapter, only the part with Moka and Akasha and Mizore, which Cal tinkered with to make it more detailed and fitting. I was also going to write the scene where Moka and Akasha meet each other again after years of being apart, but I skipped it to keep up with the rest of the story which will only continue to get better. As long as Cal does not get distracted by _Berserk_ or any other stuff, the next chapter will not take another three months to write. I know he is looking forward to writing more detailed action scenes and we have something epic planned for Akasha, so the next couple of chapters should have a lot of action in them.

EDIT - 21/09/2012 - Needlessly harsh as he was in his review, Anzer'ke pointed out a major inconsistancy with this chapter. It has now been fixed.

Stay tuned! :)


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